Thach Weave
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The Thach Weave was an aerial combat tactic developed by naval aviator John S. Thach of the United States Navy early during World War II. Thach had heard from a report published in the 22 September 1941 Fleet Air Tactical Unit Intelligence Bulletin of the Japanese Mitsubishi Zero's extraordinary maneuverability and climb rate before he ever experienced it and devised a tactic meant to give the slower-turning American F4F fighters a chance in combat. Every evening while he was based in San Diego, he would think of different tactics that could overcome the Zero's maneuverability, and tested them in flight the following day.
Working at night with matchsticks on the table, he eventually came up with what he called "Beam Defence Position", but what soon became known as the "Thach Weave". It was executed either by two fighter aircraft in formation side by side or (as illustrated) by two pairs of fighter flying together. When an enemy aircraft chose one of the two fighters as his target (the "bait" fighter) the two wingmen turned in towards each other and crossed each other's path. After the fighters had separated in opposite directions in this manner, they would then commence a turn back towards each other, thus bringing the enemy fighter into the gunsights of the other fighter - the "hook" fighter. If the maneuver was executed correctly, the enemy fighter has little chance of escape if he had followed the "bait" fighter through its turn.
Thach called on Ensign Edward Butch O'Hare, who led the second section in Thach's division, to test the idea. Thach took off with three other F4F Wildcats in the role of defenders, Butch O'Hare meanwhile led four F4Fs in the role of attackers. Trying a series of simulated attacks, Butch found that in every instance Thach's fighters had either ruined his attack or actually maneuvered into position to shoot back. After landing, Butch excitedly congratulated Thach: "Skipper, it really worked. I couldn't make any attack without seeing the nose of one of your airplanes pointed at me."
The tactic was first tested in combat by Thach during the Battle of Midway, when his flight of four F4F Wildcats was attacked by a gaggle of Zeroes. Thach's wingman, Ensign R. A. M. Dibb, was attacked by a Japanese pilot and turned towards Thach, who dove under his wingman and fired at the incoming enemy aircraft's belly until its engine ignited.
Soon enough, the maneuver had become standard among US Navy pilots, and the Army Air Force pilots also adopted it.
Marines flying Wildcats from Henderson Field on Guadalcanal also adopted the Thach Weave. The Japanese Zero pilots flying out of Rabaul were initially confounded by the tactic.
Saburo Sakai, the famous Japanese Ace relates their reaction to the Thach Weave when they encountered Guadalcanal Wildcats using it: [1]
- "For the first time Lt. Commander Tadashi Nakajima encountered what was to become a famous double-team maneuver on the part of the enemy. Two Wildcats jumped on the commander’s plane. He had no trouble in getting on the tail of an enemy fighter, but never had a chance to fire before the Grumman’s team- mate roared at him from the side. Nakajima was raging when he got back to Rabaul; he had been forced to dive and run for safety."
So effective was the maneuver that it was used by American pilots during the Vietnam war, and is still a valid tactic today.
