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Sorry to quote you but there is a Wikipedia article on Tetraphobia Tetraphobia - Wikipedia explaining the problem, which is due to shi meaning both death and four.....(Don't quote me but I vaguely recall something about Four being the Japanese equivalent of Thirteen.)
I like what this has to say. The Vic (3 planes) and Finger Four (4 planes) proved to be a liability in combat.
-Irish
Some USN VFrons entered combat with four-plane divisions (flights) but others did not. Probably similar with USMC VMFs. Am not sure how widely that applied but undoubtedly John Lundstrom's "First Team" series addresses it. My impression (emphasis added) is that more squadrons went to war with two-plane sections than with fully developed four-plane divisions but the experience in combat nudged things toward what we call finger four. (BTW, Molders gets nearly all the credit but he had help in Spain, notably Gunther Lutzow IIRC.)
RAF evolution was Darwinian. Sometimes a lone trailer was assigned as "high weaver" to warn the chaps of danger, and often did so by converting to heat & light.
Henry Sakaida was Da Man on IJN fighters, and IIRC he said it took into 1943 for Zero-etc units to convert from three- to four-plane flights. (Don't quote me but I vaguely recall something about Four being the Japanese equivalent of Thirteen.)
I don't know of them using this in the ETO...maybe except for pictures The turning aspect of this seems pretty complicated and prone to collision. one flight pulls up, one slips down during the turn. when escorting bombers fighters zigzaged over top of the bombers. that is a lot of turning in the couple hours of escorting until you get over the target area. one brain fart and its all over. I know the finger 4 was used...and tail end charlie was a dangerous position. combat itself usually became a furball or rat race ( term of that day ) with lead and wingman (hopefully) going after targets.
I don't know of them using this in the ETO...maybe except for pictures The turning aspect of this seems pretty complicated and prone to collision. one flight pulls up, one slips down during the turn. when escorting bombers fighters zigzaged over top of the bombers. that is a lot of turning in the couple hours of escorting until you get over the target area. one brain fart and its all over. I know the finger 4 was used...and tail end charlie was a dangerous position. combat itself usually became a furball or rat race ( term of that day ) with lead and wingman (hopefully) going after targets.
No. after contact it usually broke down to the lead element going after a target while his wingman providing cover. many times it was mass confusion and could get spread out over miles and various altitudes. a lot of times leads and wingmen were on their own on flight home.That formation wouldn't be used after contact with enemy aircraft, but while in transit, to keep from getting jumped by enemy aircraft en route. The Vic or Finger Four wouldn't have been used during actual dogfights either.
-Irish
Clair Lee Chennault even used to fly in a Vic with the three airplanes tied together with rope.