Figure 10-15 High Yo Yo

CHAPTER TEN

BASIC FIGHTER MANEUVERS (BFM)

slow the closure on the bogey's flight path. The out-of-plane maneuvering will place the nose of

the fighter above the plane of attack and exchange airspeed for altitude. The combination of the

out-of-plane maneuvering and the slower airspeed will allow the fighter to turn with a smaller

radius while aligning fuselages. The fighter's slower airspeed will also reduce the closure rate

allowing you to maintain or increase range. An alternative to the high yo yo would be to pull

power and pop the speedbrakes. Although a viable alternative, this will deplete your energy

package and may reduce or eliminate your offensive advantage.

The high yo yo is performed by reducing the angle-of-bank in relation to the defender's flight

path while pulling the nose up out of the defender's plane of flight. The nose is positioned

sufficiently high to prevent the overshoot, but not so high as to allow the defender to dive away

for separation. The severity of the pull-up and final nose position is dictated by the rate of

closure (Figure 10-15).

By converting airspeed to altitude and utilizing radial "G" to control closure and angle-off, the

offensive fighter is able to maintain its position and energy advantage. If the high yo yo is

performed correctly, it is extremely difficult to counter.

Figure 10-15 High Yo Yo

Low Yo Yo

The low yo yo is a lead pursuit maneuver, designed to decrease range by increasing closure rate.

The low yo yo is used to close on a bogey in order to reach an appropriate weapons envelope. A

low yo yo is usually employed when the attacker is in a low closure or low angle-off situation. A

low yo yo is accomplished by flying inside the bogey's turn while descending below the target's

plane-of-motion (Figure 10-16).

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BASIC FIGHTER MANEUVERS (BFM)