Lt Commander John Thach
The Wildcat held the line against formidable odds in the early Pacific Theater
I worked up these color schemes to Do Justice to Cowboys great old F4F from G4, and to the memory of the guys that flew them….
John Thach was an excellent tactician, and quickly devised a defensive maneuver between wingmen to negate the advantages the Zero had over the Wildcat….It became known as the Thach Weave, and he used it to great effect at Midway....
His 6 fighters from the Yorktown went against 15-20 Zeros, but John was able to bag 3 of them, while another pilot got one…outnumbered 3-to-1 in the first combat use of his tactics against the Feared Mitsubishi Zero, and he proved the Wildcat could indeed fight and WIN.
His tactics saved lives, bought time, and eliminated many an experienced Japanese pilot, long before the arrival of Hellcats and Corsairs that could go 1-on-1 against the Zero ….the high combat kill ratios of American Pilots later on in the Pacific War, were bought and paid for by men like John Thach.
Enjoy!
The Wildcat held the line against formidable odds in the early Pacific Theater
I worked up these color schemes to Do Justice to Cowboys great old F4F from G4, and to the memory of the guys that flew them….
John Thach was an excellent tactician, and quickly devised a defensive maneuver between wingmen to negate the advantages the Zero had over the Wildcat….It became known as the Thach Weave, and he used it to great effect at Midway....
His 6 fighters from the Yorktown went against 15-20 Zeros, but John was able to bag 3 of them, while another pilot got one…outnumbered 3-to-1 in the first combat use of his tactics against the Feared Mitsubishi Zero, and he proved the Wildcat could indeed fight and WIN.
His tactics saved lives, bought time, and eliminated many an experienced Japanese pilot, long before the arrival of Hellcats and Corsairs that could go 1-on-1 against the Zero ….the high combat kill ratios of American Pilots later on in the Pacific War, were bought and paid for by men like John Thach.
Enjoy!
