title: Antediluvian

text: From antiquity, fossils of large animals were often quoted as having lived together with the giants from the Book of Genesis: e.g. the Tannin or "great sea monsters" of Gen 1:21. They are often described in later books of the Bible, especially by God himself in the Book of Job: e.g. Re'em in verse 39:9, Behemoth in chapter 40 and Leviathan in chapter 41. With the advent of geological mapping in the early 19th century, it became increasingly obvious that many of the fossils associated with the "secondary" (sedimentary) rock were neither those of giant humans nor of any extant animals. These included large animals such as ichthyosaurs, mosasaurs, pliosaurs and the various giant mammals found when excavating the Catacombs of Paris. The geologists of the day increasingly came to use the term 'antediluvian' only for the younger strata containing fossils of animals resembling those alive today.


title: Rhenzy Feliz

text: Rhenzy Feliz (born October 26, 1997) is an American actor and occasional singer, who is best known for playing the role of Camilo Madrigal in Disney's 2021 computer-animated feature film "Encanto" and Alex Wilder in the Hulu/Marvel original series "Runaways".


title: Rhenzy Feliz

text: Feliz was born in the Bronx to a 21-year-old single mother. He is of Dominican descent. His mother moved him to Florida, where he reportedly attended eight different schools while still in elementary school. "[W]e moved to Florida because she hated the cold and didn't want me to grow up in an environment like that. We didn't end up in an amazing place in Florida, but it was better than the Bronx in New York at that time... And because of her, I had a very good childhood." After his mother remarried, they moved to Los Angeles and he attended Santa Monica High School where he majored in Drama due to gaining an interest in it. He and his team were finalists in the 2016 August Wilson Monologue Competition and The Music Center's Spotlight Program where he gained recognition.


title: Rhenzy Feliz

text: Feliz eventually landed the role of Alex Wilder in "Marvel's Runaways". He made a guest appearance on "Kevin (Probably) Saves the World" as Marc, "a young man who has left home in search of adventure".


title: Rhenzy Feliz

text: In 2021, Feliz voiced the character of Camilo Madrigal in Disney's computer-animated feature film "Encanto".


title: 1996 Charkhi Dadri mid-air collision

text: On 12 November 1996, Saudia Flight 763, a Boeing 747 en route from Delhi, India, to Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, and Kazakhstan Airlines Flight 1907, an Ilyushin Il-76 en route from Chimkent, Kazakhstan, to Delhi, collided over the village of Charkhi Dadri, around west of Delhi. The crash killed all 349 people on board both planes, making it the world's deadliest mid-air collision and the deadliest aviation accident to occur in India. The crash was caused by failure of the Kazakhstani crew to maintain the correct altitude, because of confused dialogue with the tower, communicated via the radio operator, while also apparently fighting turbulence.


title: 1996 Charkhi Dadri mid-air collision

text: Saudi Arabian Airlines Flight 763 was a Boeing 747-168B, registration HZ-AIH, departing from Delhi as part of a scheduled international Delhi–Dhahran–Jeddah passenger service with 312 people on board. The crew on this flight consisted of Captain Khalid Al-Shubaily (age 45), First Officer Nazir Khan, and Flight Engineer Ahmed Edrees. Al-Shubaily was a veteran pilot with 9,837 flying hours.


title: 1996 Charkhi Dadri mid-air collision

text: There is some dispute as to the nationalities of the passengers of Flight 763. According to an article published on 14 November 1996, 215 Indians, many of whom worked in Saudi Arabia as blue-collar workers, boarded the flight, along with 40 Nepalis and three Americans. However, according to a different article, the passenger manifest included 17 people of other nationalities, including nine Nepalis, three Pakistanis, two Americans, one Bangladeshi, one British, and one Saudi Arabian. Twelve of the crew members, including five anti-terrorism officials, were Saudi Arabian citizens.


title: 1996 Charkhi Dadri mid-air collision

text: Kazakhstan Airlines Flight 1907, a Ilyushin Il-76TD with registration UN-76435 was on a charter service from Chimkent Airport to Delhi. The crew consisted of Captain Alexander Cherepanov (age 44), First Officer Ermek Dzhangirov, Flight Engineer Alexander Chuprov, Navigator Zhahanbek Aripbaev, and Radio Operator Egor Repp. Cherepanov was highly experienced, with 9,229 flight hours.


title: 1996 Charkhi Dadri mid-air collision

text: A company from Kyrgyzstan chartered the flight, and the passenger manifest mostly included ethnic Russian Kyrgyz citizens planning to go shopping in India. Thirteen Kyrgyz traders boarded the flight.


title: 1996 Charkhi Dadri mid-air collision

text: SVA Flight 763 departed Delhi at 18:32 local time (13:02 UTC). KZA Flight 1907 was descending simultaneously, to land at Delhi. Both flights were controlled by approach controller V.K. Dutta. The Kazakhstan Airlines plane was cleared to descend to when it was from the beacon of the destination airport, while the SVA plane, travelling on the same airway but in the opposite direction, was cleared to climb to . About eight minutes later, around 18:40, the KZA flight reported having reached its assigned altitude of , but it was actually lower, at , and still descending. At this time, Dutta advised the flight, "Identified traffic 12 o'clock, reciprocal Saudia Boeing 747, . Report in sight."


title: 1996 Charkhi Dadri mid-air collision

text: When the controller called Flight 1907 again, he received no reply. He tried to warn of the other flight's distance, but was too late. The two aircraft collided, with the tail of the KZA flight slicing through the left wing of the SVA 747 and horizontal stabiliser. The crippled Saudi Boeing quickly lost control and went into a rapidly descending spiral with fire trailing from the wing, and the aircraft broke up in mid air before crashing into the ground at a nearly supersonic speed of . The Ilyushin remained structurally intact as it entered a steady but rapid and uncontrolled descent, until it crashed in a field. Rescuers discovered four critically injured passengers from the Ilyushin, but they all died soon afterwards. Two passengers from the Saudia flight survived the crash, still strapped to their seats, only to die of internal injuries soon after. In the end, all 312 people on board SVA763 and all 37 people on KZA1907 were killed.


title: 1996 Charkhi Dadri mid-air collision

text: The collision took place about west of Delhi. The wreckage of the Saudi Arabian aircraft landed near Dhani village, Bhiwani District, Haryana. The wreckage of the Kazakh aircraft hit the ground near Birohar village, Rohtak District, Haryana.


title: 1996 Charkhi Dadri mid-air collision

text: The crash was investigated by the Lahoti Commission, headed by then-Delhi High Court judge Ramesh Chandra Lahoti. Depositions were taken from the Air Traffic Controllers Guild and the two airlines. The flight data recorders were decoded by Kazakhstan Airlines and Saudia under the supervision of air crash investigators in Moscow and Farnborough, England, respectively. The ultimate cause was held to be the failure of Kazakhstan Airlines Flight 1907's pilot to follow ATC instructions, whether due to cloud turbulence or due to communication problems.


title: 1996 Charkhi Dadri mid-air collision

text: The commission determined that the accident had been the fault of the Kazakhstani Il-76 commander, who (according to FDR evidence) had descended from the assigned altitude of and subsequently and even lower. The report ascribed the cause of this serious breach in operating procedure to the lack of English language skills on the part of the Kazakhstani aircraft pilots; they were relying entirely on their radio operator for communications with the ATC. The radio operator did not have his own flight instrumentation and had to look over the pilots' shoulders for a reading. Kazakhstani officials stated that the aircraft had descended while their pilots were fighting turbulence inside a bank of cumulus clouds.


title: 1996 Charkhi Dadri mid-air collision

text: Indian air controllers also complained that the Kazakhstani pilots sometimes confused their calculations because they are accustomed to using metre altitudes and kilometre distances, while most other countries use feet and nautical miles respectively for aerial navigation.


title: 1996 Charkhi Dadri mid-air collision

text: Just a few seconds from impact, the Kazakhstani plane climbed slightly and the two planes collided. This was because the radio operator of Kazakhstan 1907 discovered only then that they were not at 15,000 feet and asked the pilot to climb. The captain gave orders for full throttle, and the plane climbed, only to hit the oncoming Saudi Arabian plane. The tail of the Kazakhstani plane clipped the left wing of the Saudi Arabian jet, severing both parts from their respective planes. Had the Kazakhstani pilots not climbed slightly, it is likely that they would have passed under the Saudi Arabian plane.


title: 1996 Charkhi Dadri mid-air collision

text: The recorder of the Saudi Arabian plane revealed the pilots recited the prayer that is required, according to Islamic law, when one faces death. The counsel for the ATC Guild denied the presence of turbulence, quoting meteorological reports, but did state that the collision occurred inside a cloud. This was substantiated by the affidavit of Capt. Place, who was the commander of a Lockheed C-141B Starlifter, which was flying into New Delhi at the time of the crash. The members of his crew filed similar affidavits.


title: 1996 Charkhi Dadri mid-air collision

text: Furthermore, Indira Gandhi International Airport did not have secondary surveillance radar, which provides extra information, such as the aircraft's identity and altitude, by reading transponder signals; instead the airport had primary radar, which produces readings of distance and bearing, but not altitude. In addition, departures and arrivals both shared a single corridor within the civilian airspace around New Delhi. Most areas have separate corridors: one for departures and another one for arrivals. But the airspace of Delhi in 1996 had only one civilian corridor because much of the airspace was taken by the Indian Air Force. Due to the crash, the air-crash investigation report recommended changes to air-traffic procedures and infrastructure in New Delhi's air-space:


title: 1996 Charkhi Dadri mid-air collision

text: The Directorate General of Civil Aviation subsequently made it mandatory for all aircraft flying in and out of India to be equipped with an airborne collision avoidance system. This set a worldwide precedent for mandatory use of Traffic Collision Avoidance System.


title: 1996 Charkhi Dadri mid-air collision

text: As of 2021, there is an ongoing effort by the Charkhi Dadri district administration to develop a memorial honoring the victims of the mid-air collision. The proposed memorial, which would consist of names and other information of the victims, would be located at a to-be built memorial-park in the district. However, the district administration is waiting to get an approval for the project from the Haryana government, and plans to include the participation of Ministry of Civil Aviation of India, Airport Authority of India, and embassies of Saudi Arabia and Kazakhstan in the development of the memorial.


title: 1996 Charkhi Dadri mid-air collision

text: Miditech, a company based in Gurugram, Haryana, produced a documentary about the disaster called "Head On!", which aired on the National Geographic Channel.


title: 1996 Charkhi Dadri mid-air collision

text: The disaster was also the subject of an episode in the documentary series "Mayday (Air Crash Investigation)" on 11 November 2009 entitled "Sight Unseen", also shown on the National Geographic Channel.


title: 1996 in film

text: The year 1996 involved many significant films. The major releases this year included "Scream", "Independence Day", "Fargo", "Trainspotting", "The Rock", "The English Patient", "Twister", "Space Jam", "Mars Attacks!", "Jerry Maguire" and a film version of the musical "Evita".


title: Thanjavur

text: Thanjavur (), also Tanjore, is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Thanjavur is the 11th biggest city in Tamil Nadu. Thanjavur is an important center of South Indian religion, art, and architecture. Most of the Great Living Chola Temples, which are UNESCO World Heritage Monuments, are located in and around Thanjavur. The foremost among these, the Brihadeeswara Temple, is located in the centre of the city. Thanjavur is also home to Tanjore painting, a painting style unique to the region.


title: Thanjavur

text: Thanjavur is the headquarters of the Thanjavur District. The city is an important agricultural centre located in the Kaveri Delta and is known as the "Rice bowl of Tamil Nadu". Thanjavur is administered by a municipal corporation covering an area of and had a population of 290,720 in 2011. Roadways are the major means of transportation, while the city also has rail connectivity. The nearest airport is Tiruchirapalli International Airport, located away from the city. The nearest seaport is Karaikal, which is away from Thanjavur.


title: Thanjavur

text: The city first rose to prominence during the reign of the Cholas when it served as the capital of the empire. After the fall of the Cholas, the city was ruled by various dynasties such as the Mutharaiyar dynasty, the Pandyas, the Vijayanagar Empire, the Madurai Nayaks, the Thanjavur Nayaks, the Thanjavur Marathas and the British Empire. It has been a part of independent India since 1947.


title: Thanjavur

text: The city's name is believed to be derived from a portmanteau of "thanjam puguntha oor" () which means "the town where refugees entered", referring to the town's history of providing hospitality to newcomers. According to another local legend, the word "Thanjavur" was derived from "Tanjan", who was a Demon who was killed on this very place and that asura asked to make a beautiful city there in Hindu mythology and later the asura was slain in what is now Thanjavur by the Hindu god Neelamegha Perumal, a form of Vishnu. The city's name "Thanjavur" might also be derived from the name of a Mutharayar king, "Thananjay" or "Dhananjaya". Thananjaya (Dhananjaya) added to -Oor gives the name Thanjavur. The Kalamalla stone inscription (the first stone inscription) was made by the Renati Chola king, Erikal Muthuraju Dhanunjaya Varma of 575 CE.


title: Thanjavur

text: This place was previously called Śiyāli. Indra once fled to this place in fear of the asura called Śūrapadma and did tapas here.


title: Thanjavur

text: There are no references to Thanjavur in the Sangam period (third century BCE to fourth century CE) Tamil records, though some scholars believe that the city has existed since that time. Kovil Venni, situated to the east of the city, was the site of the Battle of Venni between the Chola king Karikala and a confederacy of the Cheras and the Pandyas. The Cholas seemed to have faced an invasion of the Kalabhras in the third century CE after which the kingdom faded into obscurity. The region around present day Thanjavur was conquered by the Mutharayars during the sixth century, who ruled it up to 849.


title: Thanjavur

text: The Cholas came to prominence once more through the rise of the Medieval Chola monarch Vijayalaya (841–878 CE) in about 850 CE. Vijayalaya conquered Thanjavur from the Mutharayar king Elango Mutharayar and built a temple dedicated to the Hindu goddess Nisumbhasudani. His son Aditya I (871–901) consolidated their hold over the city. The Rashtrakuta king Krishna II (878–914), a contemporary of the Chola king Parantaka I (907–950), claims to have conquered Thanjavur, but there are no records to support the claim. Gradually, Thanjavur became the most important city in the Chola Empire and remained its capital till the emergence of Gangaikonda Cholapuram in about 1025. During the first decade of the eleventh century, the Chola king Raja Raja Chola I (985–1014) constructed the Brihadeeswarar Temple at Thanjavur. The temple is considered to be one of the best specimens of Tamil architecture.


title: Thanjavur

text: When the Chola Empire began to decline in the 13th century, the Pandyas from the south invaded and captured Thanjavur twice, first between 1218–19 and again in 1230. During the second invasion, the Chola king Rajaraja III (1216–56) was exiled and he sought the help of the Hoysala king Vira Narasimha II (1220–35) to regain Thanjavur. Thanjavur was eventually annexed along with the rest of the Chola kingdom by the Pandya king Maravarman Kulasekara Pandyan I (1268–1308) in 1279 and the Chola kings were forced to accept the suzerainty of the Pandyas. The Pandyas ruled Thanjavur from 1279 to 1311 when their kingdom was raided by the forces of Malik Kafur (1296–1306) and later annexed by the Delhi Sultanate. The Sultanate extended its authority directly over the conquered regions from 1311 to 1335 and then through the semi-independent Ma'bar Sultanate from 1335 to 1378. Starting from the 1350s, the Ma'bar Sultanate was steadily absorbed into the rising Vijayanagar Empire.


title: Thanjavur

text: Thanjavur is believed to have been conquered by Kampanna Udayar during his invasion of Srirangam between 1365 and 1371. Deva Raya's inscription dated 1443, Thirumala's inscription dated 1455 and Achuta Deva's land grants dated 1532 and 1539 attest Vijayanagar's dominance over Thanjavur. Sevappa Nayak (1532–80), the Vijayanagar viceroy of Arcot, established himself as an independent monarch in 1532 (1549, according to some sources) and founded the Thanjavur Nayak kingdom. Achuthappa Nayak (1560–1614), Raghunatha Nayak (1600–34) and Vijaya Raghava Nayak (1634–73) are some of the important rulers of the Nayak dynasty who ruled Thanjavur. Thanjavur Nayaks were notable for their patronage of literature and arts. The rule of the dynasty came to an end when Thanjavur fell to the Madurai Nayak king Chokkanatha Nayak (1662–82) in 1673. Vijaya Raghunatha Nayak, the son of Chokkanatha, was killed in a battle and Chokkanatha's brother Alagiri Nayak (1673–75) was crowned as the ruler of the empire.


title: Thanjavur

text: Thanjavur was successfully conquered in 1674 by Ekoji I (1675–84), the Maratha feudatory of the sultan of Bijapur and half-brother of Shivaji (1627/30-80) of the Bhonsle dynasty. Ekoji founded the Thanjavur Maratha kingdom which ruled Thanjavur till 1855. The Marathas exercised their sovereignty over Thanjavur throughout the last quarter of the 17th and the whole of the 18th century. The Maratha rulers patronized Carnatic music. In 1787, Amar Singh, the regent of Thanjavur, deposed the minor Raja, his nephew Serfoji II (1787–93) and captured the throne. Serfoji II was restored in 1799 with the assistance of the British, who induced him to relinquish the administration of the kingdom and left him in charge of Thanjavur fort and surrounding areas. The kingdom was eventually absorbed into British India in 1855 by the Doctrine of Lapse when Shivaji II (1832–55), the last Thanjavur Maratha ruler, died without a legitimate male heir. The British referred to the city as Tanjore in their records. Five years after its annexation, the British replaced Negapatam (modern-day Nagapattinam) with Thanjavur as the seat of the district administration. Under the British, Thanjavur emerged as an important regional centre. The 1871 India census recorded a population of 52,171, making Thanjavur the third largest city in the Madras Presidency. After India's independence, Thanjavur continued as the district headquarters.


title: Thanjavur

text: Thanjavur is located at The tributaries of river Cauvery, namely, the Grand Anaicut canal (Pudhaaru), Vadavaaru and Vennaaru rivers flow through the city. Thanjavur is situated in the Cauvery delta, at a distance of south-west of Chennai and east of Tiruchirappalli. While the plains immediately adjoining the Cauvery river have been under cultivation from time immemorial, most of Thanjavur city and the surrounding areas lie in the "New Delta" – a dry, barren upland tract which was brought under irrigation during the early 19th century. To the south of Thanjavur city, is the Vallam tableland, a small plateau interspersed at regular intervals by ridges of sandstone. The nearest seaport is Nagapattinam which is east of Thanjavur. The nearest airport is Tiruchirapalli International Airport, located at a distance of . The city has an elevation of above mean sea level. The total area of the city is .


title: Thanjavur

text: The period from November to February in Thanjavur is pleasant, with a climate full of warm days and cool nights. The onset of summer is from March, with the mercury reaching its peak by the end of May and June. The average temperatures range from in January to in May and June. Summer rains are sparse and the first monsoon, the South-West monsoon, commences in June and continues till September. North-East monsoon begins October and continues till January. The rainfall during the South-West monsoon period is much lower than that of the North-East monsoon. The North-East monsoon is beneficial to the district at large because of the heavy rainfall and the Western ghats (mountain ranges) feeding the river Cauvery. The average rainfall is , most of which is contributed by the North-East monsoon.


title: Thanjavur

text: Thanjavur is an important pilgrim centre and a major tourist destination of Tamil Nadu. South Zone Culture Centre in Thanjavur is one of the regional cultural centres established by the Government of India to preserve and promote cultural heritage of India. There were 2,002,225 Indian and 81,435 foreign tourist arrivals in 2009 to Thanjavur. The most visited monument in Thanjavur is the Brihadeeswarar Temple, whose construction, the historian Percy Brown described as "a landmark in the evolution of building art in South India". Built in the 11th century by the Chola king Raja Raja Chola I (985–1014), the temple is dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva. The walls of the sanctum are covered with wall paintings from the Chola and Nayak periods. The temple was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987. It is replicated in the Gangaikonda Cholesvarar Temple constructed by Raja Raja's son Rajendra Chola I (1012–44).


title: Thanjavur

text: The Thanjavur Maratha palace was the official residence of the Bhonsle family who ruled over the Thanjavur region from 1674 to 1855. It was originally constructed by the rulers of the Thanjavur Nayak kingdom and after their fall, it served as the official residence of the Thanjavur Marathas. When most of the Thanjavur Maratha kingdom was annexed by the British Empire in 1799, the Thanjavur Marathas continued to hold sway over the palace and the surrounding fort. The southern side of the third quadrangle of the palace has a tower-like building, called the Goodagopuram.Punnainallur Mariamman temple is about 7 Kms from Brihadeeswara temple. This temple was built by the first Maratha king of Thanjavur Venkoji in the year 1680.


title: Thanjavur

text: The Saraswathi Mahal Library, established around 1700 and located in the premises of the palace, contains over 30,000 Indian and European manuscripts written on palm leaf and paper. Over eighty per cent of its manuscripts are in Sanskrit and many of them are on palm leaves. The Tamil works include treatises on medicine, and commentaries on Sangam literature. The Rajaraja Chola art gallery is located inside the palace – it has a large collection of stone and bronze images from the ninth to 12th centuries. Most of the idols present in the gallery were collected from various temples in the Thanjavur district. The Sivaganga Park is situated to the east of the Brihadeeswarar Temple and encompasses the Sivaganga Tank believed to have been built by the king Raja Raja Chola. It was created as a people's park by the Tanjore municipality in 1871–72. It has a collection of plants, animals and birds and serves as a zoo for children within the city.


title: Thanjavur

text: Schwartz Church, a historic monument located in the palace garden, was built in 1779 by Serfoji II as a token of affection for Rev. C.V. Schwartz of the Danish Mission. There are five museums in the city, namely: Archeological Museum, Tamil University Museum located with the Tamil University premises, the Saraswathi Mahal Library Museum located inside the Saraswathi Mahal, Nayak Durbar Hall Art Museum and Rajaraja Chola Museum. Raja Rajan Manimandapam is one of the tourist attractions in Thanjavur, built during the Thanjavur Tamil Conference in 1991. "Sangeetha Mahal" has a permanent handicrafts exhibition centre. Thanjavur is the cradle for many of the arts and crafts in South India. Carnatic music was codified in Thanjavur and the art flourished during the Nayak rule in the 16th century. Bharathanatyam, a classical dance form of South India, had its major styles developed in Thanjavur.


title: Thanjavur

text: Sathaya Thiruvizha is the annual birthday festival of Raja Raja Chola held during October every year. Thanjavur is the base for the Tyagaraja Aradhana, a Carnatic music festival held annually during January – February at Thiruvaiyaru, located away from the city. Thanjavur painting is a major form of classical South Indian painting from Thanjavur. It dates back to about the 1600s, the period of Nayakas of Thanjavur, who encouraged art, classical dance and music literature, both in Telugu and Tamil. The art is usually a combination of raised and painted surfaces, with the Hindu god Krishna being the most popular image depicted. In modern times, these paintings have become souvenirs of festive occasions in South India, wall decors, and collectors' items for art lovers.


title: Thanjavur

text: The major occupation of the inhabitants of the city is tourism and service-oriented industry, while the traditional occupation is agriculture.


title: Thanjavur

text: Thanjavur is known as the "Rice bowl of Tamil Nadu". Paddy (unmilled rice) is the crop and the other crops grown are blackgram, banana, coconut, gingelly, ragi, red gram, green gram, sugarcane and maize. The total percentage of land fit for cultivation is 58%. There are three seasons for agriculture in Thanjavur – "Kuruvai" (June to September), "Samba" (August to January) and Thaladi (September, October to February, March). The total rice production has been maintained at 10.615 L.M.T and 7.077 L.M.T. The city acts as a focal point for food grains transported from the adjoining areas of the Cauvery Delta. Organic farming is gradually becoming known to the farmers of Thanjavur. To maximise agricultural produce, organic farming is being implemented. Though agriculture is the main economic activity, only 7% of the population is involved in it. There is a lot of agricultural related trading that forms the key economic activity in the city.


title: Thanjavur

text: Thanjavur is an important centre of silk weaving in Tamil Nadu. There were 200 silk weaving units in the city in 1991 with around 80,000 people working in them. Thanjavur is also famous for the 'Thalaiyatti bommai' or 'Dancing dolls' which is a doll made from clay, wood or plastic. The sarees produced in the villages surrounding Thanjavur are sold in Thanjavur and neighbouring towns. Increasing production costs and competition from large-scale producers have reduced the number of people involved in the production. The city produces bell metal craft like Thanjavur metal plates, bronze images bowls, napkins and powder boxes made of copper and bronze. The city is a major manufacturer of pith works consisting of models of Hindu idols, mosques, garlands and other bird figurines. Manufacture of musical instruments like veena, tambura, violin, mrithamgam, thavil and kanjira is another economic activity in the city.


title: Thanjavur

text: All major nationalised banks such as State Bank of India, Indian Bank, Central Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, Indian Overseas Bank and private banks like ICICI Bank, City Union Bank have their branches in Thanjavur. All these banks have their automated teller machines located in various parts of the city.


title: Thanjavur

text: According to 2011 census, Thanjavur had a population of approximately 250,000 with a sex-ratio of 1,042 females for every 1,000 males, much above the national average of 929. A total of 19,860 were under the age of six, constituting 10,237 males and 9,623 females. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes accounted for 9.22% and .21% of the population respectively. The average literacy of the city was 83.14%, compared to the national average of 72.99%. There were a total of 78,005 workers, comprising 803 cultivators, 2,331 main agricultural labourers, 2,746 in house hold industries, 65,211 other workers, 6,914 marginal workers, 110 marginal cultivators, 235 marginal agricultural labourers, 322 marginal workers in household industries and 6,247 other marginal workers. As per the religious census of 2011, Thanjavur (M) had 82.87% Hindus, 8.34% Muslims, 8.58% Christians, 0.01% Sikhs, 0.01% Buddhists, 0.06% Jains, 0.11% following other religions and 0.01% following no religion or did not indicate any religious preference.


title: Thanjavur

text: As of 2008, a total (55.4%) of the land was used for residential, (3.06%) for commercial, (2.28%) for industrial, (8.81%) for public & semi public, (2.98%) for educational and (27.47%) for agriculture.


title: Thanjavur

text: Tamil is the widely spoken language, with the standard dialect being Central Tamil dialect. Telugu, Thanjavur Marathi and Saurashtra are other languages spoken in the city. Thanjavur is the cultural and political center of the Thanjavur Marathi people. While Hindus form the majority, the city also has a substantial population of Muslims and Christians. Roman Catholics in Thanjavur are affiliated to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Tanjore and Protestants are affiliated to the Trichy–Tanjore Diocese of the Church of South India. The workforce is predominantly involved in service industry involving trade and commerce. With the expansion of the city area, the opportunities for agriculture is limited and only 7% of the population is involved in it.


title: Thanjavur

text: The National Highways NH 83 and NH 36 pass through Thanjavur and NH 136 and NH 67 connect Thanjavur respectively with Perambalur and Thiruvurur. The city is connected with Nagapattinam, Thiruvarur, Chennai, Coimbatore, Erode, Karur, Tirupur, Vellore, Perambalur, Ariyalur, Mysuru, Salem, Cuddalore, Viluppuram, Tiruchirappalli, Madurai, Kumbakonam, Mayiladuthurai, Karaikal, Mannargudi, Thiruthuraipoondi, Vedaranyam, Pattukkottai, Dindigul, Oddanchatram, Palani, Pudukkottai, Karaikudi, Tirunelveli, Bengaluru, Ernakulam, Nagercoil, Tirupathi, Trivandrum and Ooty through regular bus services. Thanjavur had a single bus terminus located at the heart of the city. An integrated bus terminus, called New Bus stand was constructed in 1997 near Raja Serfoji College to handle the passenger traffic. Thanjavur has a well-maintained sub-urban public transport system. Government and private buses operate frequently between the two bus termini and other towns and villages like Vallam, Budalur, Mohamed Bunder, Nadukkavery, Pillaiyarpatti, Vallam Pudursethi, Sengipatti, Ammapettai, Mariamman Kovil, Thiruvaiyaru and Kuruvadipatti.


title: Thanjavur

text: The railway line connecting Tiruchirappalli Junction railway station to Chennai Egmore via Thanjavur, the Main Line is a historical line established by South Indian Railway Company in 1879. The Great Southern of India Railway Company (GSIR) operated a broad gauge rail service between Nagapattinam and Tiruchirapalli via Thanjavur between 1861 and 1875. During 1875 it was converted to a meter gauge line (MG line). Modern day Thanjavur railway junction has three rail heads leading to Tiruchirapalli, Kumbakonam and Thiruvarur. Thanjavur is connected by rail with most important cities and towns in India. There are daily express trains to Chennai, Mysuru, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Palakkad, Coimbatore, Erode, Tiruppur, Tiruchirapalli, Salem, Karur, Madurai, Tirunelveli, Rameswaram, Tiruchendur, Cuddalore, Dharmapuri, Viluppuram, Chengalpattu, Mannargudi, Bengaluru, Dindigul, Pudukkottai, Karaikudi, Sivagangai, Manamadurai and weekly trains to Pondicherry, Nagercoil, Kanyakumari, Tirupati, Nellore, Itarsi, Visakhapatnam, Hubli, Vasco da Gama, Goa, Vijayawada, Chandrapur, Nagpur, Jabalpur, Satna, Katni, Allahabad, Varanasi, Jaunpur, Ayodhya, and Bhubaneswar. There are frequent passenger trains from the city to towns like Thiruvarur, Nagapattinam, Karaikal, Tiruchirapalli, Kumbakonam, Mayiladuthurai and Nagore.


title: Thanjavur

text: In the early 1990s, Thanjavur was connected with Chennai via the Vayudoot flight service, which was stopped due to poor patronage. A full-fledged air force station is operational at Thanjavur. Thanjavur Air Force Station was to become a major air base by 2012, to handle Fighter, Transport aircraft and also refuelling aircraft. However, the inauguration of the Thanjavur Air Force Station took place in 27 May 2013. The Thanjavur Air Force Station bases a squadron of its Sukhoi Su-30 Supermaneuverability Fighter aircraft at Thanjavur, making it the first fighter squadron in Tamil Nadu. The nearest airport is Tiruchirapalli International Airport. The nearest Seaport is located at Nagapattinam.


title: Thanjavur

text: The municipality of Tanjore was created in 1866 as a third grade municipality as per Town Improvements Act 1865 and initially consisted of 12 members. The number was increased to 18 in 1879 and 24 in 1883. In 1897, the members were empowered to elect a Municipal Chairperson to lead them. Tanjore was upgraded to a second grade municipality in 1933, first grade in 1943 and a special grade in 1983. The functions of the municipality are devolved into six departments: General, Engineering, Revenue, Public Health, Town planning and the Computer Wing. All these departments are under the control of a Municipal Commissioner who is the supreme executive head. The legislative powers are vested in a body of 62 members, one each from the 62 wards. The legislative body is headed by an elected Chairperson assisted by a Deputy Chairperson.


title: Thanjavur

text: On 10 April 2013, the state government announced in the Assembly that Thanjavur municipality will be upgraded to a Municipal corporation. Thanjavur City Corporation is likely to have an area of of area, with a population of 3,20,828 and an income of . The villages Pudupattinam, Nanjikottai, Neelagiri, Melaveli, Pillaiyarpatti, Ramanathapuram, Pallieri, Vilar and Inathukanpatti are likely to be added to the municipal corporation limits. Thanjavur became City Corporation on 19 February 2014.


title: Thanjavur

text: Thanjavur comes under the Thanjavur State Assembly Constituency and it elects a member to the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly once every five years. From the 1977 elections, the assembly seat was won by Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) six times during the 1977, 1980, 1989, 1996, 2001 and 2006 elections, the Indian National Congress party once during the 1984 elections and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) twice during the 1991 and 2011 elections. M. Karunanidhi, who served as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu for a record five terms, was elected from the Thanjavur assembly constituency in the 1962 elections.


title: Thanjavur

text: Thanjavur is also a part of the Thanjavur Lok Sabha constituency and elects a member to the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Parliament of India, once every five years. The Lok Sabha seat has been held by the Indian National Congress for Seven terms during 1951–56, 1957–62, 1962–1967, 1980–84, 1984–1989, 1989–91 and 1991–96, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam for Seven terms during 1967–71, 1971–77, 1996–98, 1998–99, 1999–04, 2004–09 and 2009–present and All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam for one term during 1977–80. R. Venkataraman, who served as the President of India from 1987 to 1992, was elected from the Thanjavur Lok Sabha constituency in the 1951 elections.


title: Thanjavur

text: Law and order in the city is maintained by the Thanjavur subdivision of the Tamil Nadu Police, headed by a Deputy Superintendent (DSP). The Thanjavur district level police administration is headed by a Deputy Inspector General of Police, whose office is located in the city. There are six police stations in the city, one of them being an all-women police station. Some special units include prohibition enforcement, district crime, social justice and human rights, district crime records and a special branch that operates at the district level police division headed by a Superintendent of Police (SP).


title: Thanjavur

text: Thanjavur has a total of four Universities, namely the Periyar Maniammai Institute of Science & Technology, PRIST University, SASTRA University and Tamil University. The Tamil University is a state run institute, started during 1981 and obtained its statutory recognition from the University Grants Commission in 1983. It is the only one of its kind for the Tamil language doing higher research in Tamilology and advanced study in various allied branches like linguistics, translation, lexicography, music, drama and manuscriptology.


title: Thanjavur

text: Thanjavur has a total of 15 arts, science & management colleges and nine engineering colleges. The Thanjavur Medical College was established in 1961 and is one of the oldest medical colleges in Tamil Nadu. The Paddy Processing Research Centre (PPRC), which later became the Indian Institute of Food Processing Technology in 2017, is a hub for food processing research. The Saraswati Mahal Library which dates back to the end of the 16th century and the Central Library, managed by the district administration are the two most prominent libraries in the city.


title: Thanjavur

text: There are 20 registered schools in Thanjavur, catering to the primary, secondary and higher secondary educational needs of the city. St. Peter's Higher Secondary School at Thanjavur was established by Rev. C F Schwartz during 1784. Originally established as a college, it was the first school in South India which taught English to the local populace. St. Antony's Higher Secondary School, established in 1885 by the Diocese of Thanjavur, is one of the oldest schools in Thanjavur district. Christian Missionaries played a prominent role in promoting English education in Thanjavur. Kalyanasundaram Higher Secondary School, established in 1891, is one of the oldest schools in the city.


title: Thanjavur

text: Electricity supply to Thanjavur is regulated and distributed by the Tamil Nadu Electricity Board (TNEB). The city along with its suburbs is a part of Trichy Electricity Distribution Circle. Water supply is provided by the Thanjavur Corporation from the Vadavar Canal, supplied through overhead tanks located in various parts of the city. During the 2000–01 period, a total of 31 million litres of water was supplied every day for households in the city.


title: Thanjavur

text: About 110 metric tonnes of solid waste are collected from Thanjavur every day by door-to-door collection and subsequently the source segregation and dumping is carried out by the sanitary department of the Thanjavur Corporation. The coverage of solid waste management had an efficiency of 100% as of 2001. The underground drainage system covers 70% of the city and the remaining sewerage system for disposal of sullage is through septic tanks, open drains and public conveniences. The corporation maintains a total of of storm water drains: surfaced drains and unlined drains.


title: Thanjavur

text: There are 37 hospitals and seven clinical labs in Thanjavur that take care of the health care needs of the citizens. There are a total of 9,745 street lamps: 492 sodium lamps, 2,061 mercury vapour lamps, 7,180 tube lights and twelve high-mast beam lamps. The corporation operates three markets, namely the Serfoji Market, Amarar Swaminathan Market and Kamaraj Market and another market, the Subramaniya Swami Koil Market, is maintained by the Subramania Swami Temple authority. Thanjavur comes under the Thanjavur Telecom circle of the Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), India's state-owned telecom and internet services provider. Apart from telecom, BSNL also provides broadband internet service. The Regional Passport office, Trichy, operates a Passport Seva Kendra (PSK) in Thanjavur, which PSK covers the Nagappattinam, Thiruvarur, Thanjavur, Pudukkottai, and Ariyalur revenue districts.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Basic fighter maneuvers (BFM) are tactical movements performed by fighter aircraft during air combat maneuvering (ACM, also called dogfighting), to gain a positional advantage over the opponent. BFM combines the fundamentals of aerodynamic flight and the geometry of pursuit, with the physics of managing the aircraft's energy-to-mass ratio, called its specific energy.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Maneuvers are used to gain a better angular position in relation to the opponent. They can be offensive, to help an attacker gain an advantage on an enemy; or defensive, to help the defender evade an attacker's weapons. They can also be neutral, where both opponents strive for an offensive position or disengagement maneuvers, to help an escape.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Classic maneuvers include the lag pursuit or yo-yo, which add distance when the attacker may overshoot the target due to higher airspeed, the low yo-yo, which does the opposite when the attacker is flying too slow, the scissors, which attempts to drive the attacker in front of the defender, and the defensive spiral, which allows a defender to disengage from an attacker.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Situational awareness is often taught as the best tactical defense, removing the possibility of an attacker getting or remaining behind the pilot; even with speed, a fighter is open to attack from the rear.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Basic fighter maneuvers (BFM) are actions that a fighter aircraft makes during air combat maneuvering, historically known as dogfighting. The development of BFM began with the first fighter aircraft, during World War I, then continued with each following war, adapting to the changing weapons and technologies.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Basic fighter maneuvers consist of many varying tactical turns, rolls, and other actions to get behind or above an enemy, before the opponent can do the same. BFM are typically universal maneuvers which can be performed in almost any fighter aircraft, and are usually considered to be training maneuvers. Training usually begins with pilots flying the same type of aircraft, pitting only their skills against each other. In advanced training, pilots learn to fly against opponents in different types of aircraft, so pilots must learn to cope with different technological advantages as well, which more resembles real combat. In actual air combat maneuvering, variations of these basic maneuvers may become necessary, depending on the different types of aircraft involved, the weapon systems each side is using, and the number of aircraft involved.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: BFM are used in the three-dimensional arena of air combat, where maneuvers are not limited by simple two-dimensional turns, such as during a car chase. BFM not only relies on an aircraft's turn performance, but also on the pilot's ability to make trade-offs between airspeed (kinetic energy) and altitude (potential energy) to maintain an energy level that will allow the fighter to continue maneuvering efficiently. BFM also relies on the pilot's understanding of the geometry of pursuit within the three-dimensional arena, where different angles of approach can cause different rates of closure. The fighter pilot uses these angles not only to get within a range where weapons can be used, but also to avoid overshooting, which consists either of flying out in front of the opponent, called a "wingline overshoot", or crossing the enemy's flight path, called a "flight path overshoot".


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: The fighter pilot with the most advantageous position is usually above or behind the opponent, and is commonly called the attacker. Conversely, the pilot in the disadvantageous position is usually either below or ahead of the opponent, and is referred to as the defender. Most maneuvers are offensive, such as the "barrel roll attack", "high Yo-Yo", "low Yo-Yo", and "lag roll". Defensive maneuvers more often consist of turning very aggressively to avoid the attacker's guns, with maneuvers like the "break" and the "high Yo-Yo defense"; sometimes tightening the turn, sometimes relaxing it, and other times reversing the turn. The defender will usually maneuver to force an overshoot, or to extend the range enough to dive away and escape. However, other "last-ditch" maneuvers are used by the defender when the attacker achieves a firing solution, or the defender's energy becomes depleted so that maximum turn performance cannot be maintained, such as "guns defense" or the "defensive spiral".


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Basic fighter maneuver development began during World War I, with maneuvers such as the "Immelmann", named after German pilot Max Immelmann, the "break" and the "barrel roll". The modern Immelmann differs from the original version, which is now called a stall turn or "Hammerhead turn". The Immelmann turn was an effective maneuver in the early part of the war but as aircraft technology advanced and fighter engines became more powerful, it became a dangerous maneuver, because the opponent could climb and shoot the German fighters when they were almost motionless at the top of the turn.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Watching carefully over your shoulder and judging the moment he will open fire, you turn your machine quickly so as to fly at right angles to him. His bullets will generally pass behind you during the maneuver.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: During World War I, due to the low power of early aircraft, vertical movements were difficult and extended maneuvering led to a loss of energy. Combat tended to degenerate into individual attacks, the classic "dogfights". One specific maneuver that did emerge was the defensive Lufbery, in which several allied aircraft would fly in a circle so that any attackers trying to position against one of the aircraft would fly directly in front of the aircraft behind them. As engines became more powerful, three-dimensional tactics became available to counter the stalemate of the Lufbery, and by WWII it was no longer effective.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Development continued through each war, as aircraft and weapon systems became more advanced. Maneuvers such as the "combat spread" were first devised by pilots like Werner Mölders during the Spanish civil war. A simple, non-turning form of the low-Yo-Yo is depicted in John Godfrey's description of his first kill, flying a Republic P-47 Thunderbolt over Europe during World War II;


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Breathlessly I watched the 109 in between the breaks in the clouds as I dove. At 12,000 feet I leveled off and watched him up ahead. In diving I had picked up speed, and now had hit 550 miles an hour. I was about 500 feet below him and closing fast. "Quick now, I've got time." I checked all around, in back and above me, to ensure that no other [Germans] were doing the same to me. My speed was slacking off now, but I still had enough to pick up that extra 500 feet and position myself 200 yards dead astern. The 109 flew as straight as an arrow, with no weaving. As his plane filled my gunsight, I pressed the [trigger].


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Much of the modern energy-management techniques, which are used in maneuvers like the Yo-Yos, were only described scientifically after John R. Boyd developed his Energy-Maneuverability theory during the Vietnam War. Even so, as quoted by the U.S Navy Air Training Command, "1) The basics of ACM have not changed since the early days of aviation, and 2) A fighter pilot must maintain constant aggressiveness for success. As the [Red] Baron would say, 'All else is rubbish.'".


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Basic fighter maneuvers (BFM) are used by fighter pilots during a dogfight to gain a positional advantage over an opponent. Pilots must have keen knowledge of not only their own aircraft's performance characteristics, but also of the opponents, taking advantage of their own strengths while exploiting the enemy's weaknesses. Pilots need good eyesight, situation awareness, and the ability to maneuver against an opponent in three dimensions. BFM are generally grouped into two categories:


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Primary maneuvers are those which are performed without respect to an enemy's position. These are often simple maneuvers, such as climbs, turns, aileron rolls, slow rolls, and rudder rolls. Relative maneuvers are performed in relation to the motion of another aircraft. These are often more complex, including energy saving maneuvers, such as the high and low Yo-Yos, and repositioning maneuvers such as displacement rolls. It is easy to fall into the trap of considering BFM to be a series of set maneuvers providing a foolproof recipe for a dominant position. The reality is that BFM are a series of fluid and often improvised proactive and reactive actions, varying infinitely according to range, altitude, speed, aircraft type, weapons system type and any of an enormous range of other factors. An extremely successful tactic one day may yield unfortunate results if repeated the next day, and pilots often credit luck as a major factor.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: BFM are normally considered to be individual maneuvers, where ACM is applied to the tactics behind dogfighting as a whole. In military training, BFM are often conducted against an adversary in the same type of aircraft. This allows the pilot to fly against a machine with known performance values and allows aircrew to build their awareness of important concepts such as sight picture, rates of closure and line of sight rates that are cues to being successful in the visual arena. This also allows pilots to build their BFM skills against one another, without either having a particular technological advantage.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Dissimilar air combat training (DACT) consists of advanced maneuvers performed by aircraft of two separate types (such as F-16 vs F/A-18). This training is valuable in that both pilots are not as aware of the performance capabilities and characteristics of the other aircraft and, therefore, must rely on the fundamental BFM principles and evaluation/decision making skills to maneuver to an advantageous position versus their opponent. In this type of training, the advantages of one type of fighter may differ greatly from the advantages of the other, so pilots learn to refine their BFM skills to make use of the opponent's weaknesses. Using BFM as the building blocks for multiple aircraft maneuvers, such as the finger four, loose deuce, and Thach weave, pilots learn how to maneuver in situations involving one against one, one against two, two against two, two against many, or even one against many. This type of training, introduced during the last stages of flight school, is more like actual combat, and is the most beneficial for aircrew once basic BFM skills are mastered.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Energy is a primary factor in controlling and maneuvering an aircraft. If an attacker has too much energy, it may be easy to get in range but difficult to prevent an overshoot. Too little energy and the attacker may not be able to get in range at all. If the defender has more energy than the attacker, an escape may be possible, but too little energy and the defender will lose maneuverability.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: In aviation, the term "energy" does not refer to the fuel nor the thrust it produces. Instead, thrust is referred to as "power". Energy is the state of the fighter's mass at any given time, and is the result of the power. Energy comes in two forms, which are kinetic and potential. Kinetic energy is a function of the fighter's mass and speed, while potential energy is a function of its mass, gravity and altitude. The combined potential and kinetic energy is called the total energy. Because the energy package is the combination of mass, speed and altitude, a fighter flying at low altitude but a high speed may have the same total energy as a fighter of equal mass, but flying at a low speed and high altitude.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: One of the inputs to the formula for total energy is the mass of the object, in this case the aircraft. This means that two aircraft flying under identical conditions of speed and altitude will have different energy; the heavier aircraft will have higher energy. However, this does not imply that the heavier aircraft will be more maneuverable, as that mass will require more energy to accelerate. For this reason, a more useful measure is the specific energy, the energy per unit weight. Lighter aircraft generally have higher specific energy for any given operational conditions.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Energy state can be changed through the application of power. Heavier aircraft will require more power to change their energy state, so two aircraft with equal energy will not have the same maneuverability. This leads to the concept of "specific power" in the same fashion as specific energy. For any given operational condition, a selected speed and altitude for instance, any given aircraft will require a certain amount of power simply to maintain those conditions, due largely to the effects of drag. This gives rise to the concept of "specific excess power", the amount of additional power available to an aircraft over and above the power needed to maintain those flight conditions.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Specific excess power is normally expressed for an aircraft flying straight and level. Turning requires an expenditure of energy, both to change the energy state of the aircraft, as well as due to the additional induced drag that is naturally created as a side effect of generating the lift force required to change direction. This implies that an aircraft with higher specific excess power has higher sustained maneuverability performance. This overall concept is known as "energy maneuverability".


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Maneuverability is not solely a factor of energy or specific power, many other factors like the efficiency of the wing planform at generating lift, or the load limits of the aircraft, can limit the maneuverability in ways that are not directly related to weight and power. This gives different aircraft very different types of performance under various maneuvers. For instance, an aircraft with high thrust for weight may have high specific excess power but nevertheless suffer from very high induced drag during turns - this was very common on delta wing aircraft for instance - in which case it will attempt to avoid turns and instead use climbs and dives to its advantage. Such aircraft are referred to as "energy fighters". Others, typically those with lower wing loading, may have less excess power but nevertheless be able to perform turns without losing as much energy, and are referred to as "angles fighters" or "dog-fighters".


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: When two aircraft meet in combat, they may have different energy states and energy retention. Typically, the fighter with higher energy and better retention will make an "energy move", like a high yo-yo to maintain the energy advantage, while the fighter at an energy disadvantage (angles fighter) will make an "angles move" such as a break turn, trying to use the opponent's energy to their own advantage.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: In combat, a pilot is faced with a variety of limiting factors. Some limitations are constant, such as gravity, structural integrity, and thrust-to-weight ratio. Other limitations vary with speed and altitude, such as turn radius, turn rate, and the specific energy of the aircraft. The fighter pilot uses BFM to turn these limitations into tactical advantages. A faster, heavier aircraft may not be able to evade a more maneuverable aircraft in a turning battle, but can often choose to break off the fight and escape by diving or using its thrust to provide a speed advantage. A lighter, more maneuverable aircraft can not usually choose to escape, but must use its smaller turning radius at higher speeds to evade the attacker's guns, and to try to circle around behind the attacker.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: BFM are a constant series of trade-offs between these limitations to conserve the specific energy state of the aircraft. Even if there is no great difference between the energy states of combating aircraft, there will be as soon as the attacker accelerates to catch up with the defender. However, potential energy can easily be traded for kinetic energy, so an aircraft with an altitude advantage can easily turn the potential energy into speed. Instead of applying thrust, a pilot may use gravity to provide a sudden increase in speed, by diving, at a cost in the potential energy that was stored in the form of altitude. Similarly, by climbing the pilot can use gravity to provide a decrease in speed, conserving the aircraft's kinetic energy by changing it into altitude. This can help an attacker to prevent an overshoot, while keeping the energy available in case one does occur.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Both turn rate (degrees per second), and turn radius (diameter of the turn), increase with speed, until the "corner speed" is reached. Corner speed is defined as the minimum speed at which the maximum sustainable g-force load can be generated (the load at which power equals drag), and varies with the fighter's structural design, wing loading characteristics, weight (including added weight from missiles, drop-tanks, etc...), and thrust capabilities. It often falls in the area of . The maximum sustainable-load the aircraft can generate also varies, but is typically between 3 and 5 g's. At the corner speed, the fighter can attain its maximum turn-rate, flying the craft just at the edge of buffeting (the turbulence preceding a stall). Below this speed, the aircraft will be limited to flying at lower g's, resulting in a decrease in turn rate. If the pilot attempts to "pull" more g's, the aircraft will buffet and aerodynamically stall. On the other hand, if the fighter is flown above its corner speed it will be able to pull higher g's, but doing so will cause it to lose airspeed from the excess drag created. Turning at the maximum sustainable-load at speeds above the corner speed will result in an increase in turn radius which, respectively, will cause a decrease in turn rate.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: "Instantaneous turn-rate" describes turns which are above the maximum sustainable-load. These turns can be as high as 9 g's before the pilot begins to lose consciousness (G-LOC). These turns can have a very small turn radius, but cause a loss in energy, either in the form of speed or altitude. Therefore, these turns are unsustainable, causing the fighter to lose massive amounts of airspeed, sometimes reaching stall speed in as little as a quarter turn. Above the maximum sustained turn-rate, aerodynamic drag exceeds the maximum engine thrust (aircraft has zero "excess power"), meaning aircraft specific energy will be lost even when applying full engine power. Only by turning the aircraft at its best "sustained turn-rate" can the aircraft maintain its specific energy. However, situations in combat may require a change in energy, and energy may also be increased by pulling less than the maximum sustained g-force load.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Successful BFM requires geometry as much as it does skill and stamina. Pilots must know their aircraft's corner speed, as well as optimum angles of bank (AOB) and angles of attack (AOA), without consciously thinking about them. At the same time, pilots must remain conscious of the angle between the opponent's velocity vector and their own, called the track crossing angle (TCA), which is important when aligning or avoiding a firing solution. Most importantly, the pilot must remain aware of the angle off tail (AOT), which is the angle between flight paths. A high AOT causes a high rate of closure, but makes achieving a suitable guns solution nearly impossible. Acquiring a low AOT (getting on an enemy's tail), can decrease or even reverse closure rate, and is usually the primary goal before an overshoot occurs. However, an uncooperative defender may try to take advantage of the high closure rate by turning to increase AOT, forcing an overshoot.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: The AOT is often estimated by the position of the attacking aircraft's nose in relation to the defender. AOT are generally grouped into three categories, called "pursuit curves". "Lead pursuit" occurs when the nose of the attacker points ahead of the defender, while "pure pursuit" happens when the attacker's nose points directly at the defender. If the attacker's nose points behind the defender, the condition is known as "lag pursuit".


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: The primary purpose for lead pursuit is to provide closure, even when chasing a faster opponent. The high AOT presented during lead pursuit allows the attacker to quickly decrease the forward, lateral, and vertical separation between aircraft, simply by traveling a shorter path. However, lead pursuit causes the AOT to increase at a rapid rate. This causes the closure rate to increase as well, and, in an attempt to prevent an overshoot, the attacker will have to pull an increasingly tighter turn upon nearing the defender.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: An attacker in lead pursuit is well within the defender's rear view. Unless the defender has enough of a speed advantage to escape by relaxing the turn and dropping into a shallow dive, the defender will likely turn sharply in an effort to increase the AOT, forcing the attacker to turn even harder, to overshoot, or to perform a maneuver out of the horizontal plane to compensate.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Lead pursuit is used during gun attacks, because the fast motion of combat requires that the aircraft's cannons be aimed at a point in space ahead of the defender, where the enemy will be when the bullets arrive. This is called "leading the target". Lead pursuit presents the attacker with difficulty in maintaining sight of the opponent, as the nose of the attacking aircraft becomes an obstruction to the pilot's view.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Like lead pursuit, pure pursuit is used to provide closure. However, closure is not as rapid, nor is the rate of increase in AOT. This is not as effective against a faster moving opponent, so the attacker may need to accelerate to maintain pure pursuit. Pure pursuit is used when acquiring a missile lock. It both places the attacker further aft of the defender and presents the defender with the smallest amount of surface area to see. This complicates evasive action, since only the front of the attacking aircraft is in view.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Lag pursuit is used to stop or reverse closure rate and to decrease AOT, while allowing the attacker to maintain or increase forward separation (also called nose/tail separation, or nose-to-tail). Following outside the defender's turn radius, the attacker can maintain or increase energy while forcing the defender to turn at an energy depleting rate.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: "Hot side" lag occurs when there is a large amount of forward separation between aircraft, showing the top side of the defending fighter. This puts the attacker in the defender's rear view, and the common defense is to tighten the turn. "Cold side" lag occurs when there is little nose-to-tail separation, leaving the belly of the defending fighter in view. This puts the attacker in the defender's blind spot, and the common defense is to reverse the turn. Unless the defender is markedly more maneuverable, and lateral separation is just right, lag pursuit can not be maintained for long, causing the AOT to decrease until a suitable firing solution is presented.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Maneuvers are rarely performed in the strictly vertical or horizontal planes. Most turns contain some degree of "pitch" or "slice". During a turn in an oblique plane, a pitch turn occurs when the aircraft's nose points above the horizon, causing an increase in altitude. A slice turn happens when the nose points below the horizon, causing a decrease in altitude. The purpose is not only to make the aircraft harder for an enemy to track, but also to increase or decrease speed while maintaining energy.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: An out-of-plane maneuver enhances this effect, by diverting the fighter into a new plane of travel. Increasing the pitch or slice can quickly provide a change in speed, which can just as quickly be reversed by returning to the original plane of travel. Out-of-plane maneuvers are not only used to provide a reduction in turn radius, but also causes the fighter to fly a longer path in relation to the direction of travel. A maneuver such as a high Yo-Yo is used to slow closure and to bring the fighter into lag pursuit, while a low Yo-Yo is used to increase closure and to bring the fighter into lead pursuit.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: During an out-of-plane maneuver, the attacker's nose no longer points at the defender. Instead, the aircraft is rolled until its lift vector (an imaginary line running vertically from the center of the aircraft, perpendicular to its wings), is aligned either ahead of, directly at, or behind the defender, using roll rate instead of turn rate to set the proper pursuit curve. The aircraft's velocity vector (an imaginary line in the direction of motion) will be pulled in the direction of the lift vector.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: A useful type of out-of-plane maneuver employed to decrease AOT are various barrel rolls called displacement rolls, in order to shift the aircraft laterally from its projected flight path onto a new flight path. By controlling the roll rate the pilot can control the degree of displacement. An attacker following a more maneuverable opponent may become stuck in lag pursuit (outside the defender's turn radius), unable to achieve a firing solution. By displacing the turn, the two aircraft's flight paths will eventually cross. The AOT will then decrease until the nose of the attacker's aircraft points momentarily at the defender, and then ahead of the defender. A displacement roll is a good tactic when ever a reduction in turn radius is needed, but a decrease in turn rate is allowed.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: There are three basic situations in air combat maneuvering requiring BFM to convert to a favorable result, which are neutral, offensive, and defensive. Most relative maneuvers can be grouped into one of these three categories.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Neutral positions generally occur when both opponents spot each other at the same time. Neither the pilot nor the opponent have the advantage of surprise. Neither has the ability to point the nose of their aircraft at the opponent with sufficient range to employ forward firing ordnance (missiles/guns) prior to the opponent presenting a threat of a similar manner. Each is focused on converting to an offensive situation while forcing their opponent into a defensive.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: An offensive position generally occurs when the pilot gets sight of the opponent first. With the advantage of surprise, the pilot can maneuver into a better position to attack the opponent, making it more difficult for the enemy to evade the attack. Common tactics include increasing altitude and attempting to place the fighter directly between the sun and the opponent. This helps put the pilot in a dominant position, primarily concerned with prosecuting their advantage for a kill. An offensive position is generally defined as the ability to get above or behind the enemy. The pilot is able to create an energy advantage, providing the ability to swoop down on the opponent and spray the area with bullets while using the speed to climb back to a safe altitude. The attacker also has an orientation-related advantage, being able to press the attack while avoiding the enemy's weapons.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: A defensive position usually occurs when the pilot spots the attacker late. Usually below or ahead of the opponent, the pilot is in a weak position, primarily concerned with denying a shot to the opponent and converting to a neutral position. The secondary goal is either to escape or to achieve a dominant position. If the attacker is at an energy disadvantage, the defender will likely use the speed to disengage, but, if the attacker is moving much faster, the defender will usually maneuver in order to force a dangerous overshoot. A dangerous overshoot happens when an attacker flies out in front of the defender, causing their roles to be reversed.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Once an attacker gets behind a defender, there are three problems to solve in order to prosecute the kill. The attacker must be able to get into the same geometric plane as the defender, get in range without overshooting, and be able to lead the target. The defender will usually turn aggressively to spoil the attacker's solution.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Aircraft turn in circular motions, following a circumference around a central point. The circumference is often referred to as the "bubble", while the central point is often called the "post". Any change in the g-force load on the aircraft causes a change in the bubble's size as well as a change in turn radius, moving the post in relation to the fighter. Because an aircraft turning at its maximum load cannot turn any tighter, any aircraft located between such a fighter and its post is momentarily safe from attack. It is in this area where an attacking fighter will usually try to position itself.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Once inside the defender's bubble, the attacker will be in lead pursuit and may have an opportunity for a lucky "snapshot" hit. If the attacker can maneuver onto the defender's flight path before an overshoot occurs, the attacker will be able to stop or reverse closure rate. The most desirable position is, following the defender's flight path, a distance equal to one turn radius behind the opponent. This position, from which the attacker will be able to safely maintain command of the fight, is termed the "control point". The control point lies in the heart of an imaginary, cone-shaped area, called the "control zone", and it is within this zone that the attacker will have both sufficient time and range to react to the defender's countermeasures.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: During a dogfight, the term "overshoot" refers to situations in which the attacker either crosses the enemy's flight path or passes the defender, ending up in front.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Passing the defender is referred to as a "wingline overshoot". Also called a "3-9 line overshoot" or a "dangerous overshoot", this occurs when an attacking aircraft approaches too fast and accidentally crosses the defender's wingline (an imaginary line passing through the center of the aircraft at the 3 o-clock and 9 o-clock positions). A wingline overshoot is usually referred to as "flying out in front" and causes "role reversal", putting the attacker in range of the defender's weapons, and the attacker suddenly becomes the defender.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: When the attacker crosses the defender's flight path, the situation is called a "flight path overshoot". This happens when an attacker fails to control closure and crosses the defender's flight path from behind. Although not necessarily dangerous, it is possible for a flight path overshoot to cause the attacker to fly out in front of the defender. More often, however, it greatly reduces the attacker's angular advantage over the defender. Flight path overshoots are divided into two categories, called "control-zone overshoots" and "in-close overshoots".


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: A "control-zone overshoot" occurs when the attacker crosses the defender's flight path from behind the front edge of the control zone. After a control-zone overshoot, the defender will continue turning in the same direction to retain the acquired angular advantage, trying to prevent the attacker from getting a good aim.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: An '"in-close overshoot" happens when the attacker overshoots the defender's flight path ahead of the control zone. This gives the defender the opportunity to reverse the turn and possibly to cause a wingline overshoot, allowing the defender to move in behind the attacker and reverse their roles.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Aircraft can turn either towards or away from each other. How the opponent turns in relation to the other determines the flow of the fight. If two fighters meet head-on, they will usually make a very close, neutral pass, called a "merge". After the pass, both fighters may turn to engage. If the two fighters turn in the same direction (i.e.: both turn to the north), they will be traveling toward each other along the same turn circle. This type of engagement is known as "one-circle flow". If the aircraft turn in opposite directions (e.g.: one turns north but the other turns south), they will move away from each other, flying around to engage each other on separate turn circles. This is called "two-circle flow".


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: One-circle flow will result in another merge, unless an angular advantage can be obtained. During one-circle flow, the fighter with the smaller turn radius will have the advantage. Pilots will often pitch-up out-of-plane while increasing thrust, to help minimize turn radius. Because it does not really matter where the two fighters meet in the circle, turn rate is of little importance during one circle flow. Therefore, it is often called a radius fight. An out-of-plane maneuver, such as a displacement roll, is a viable option for reducing turn radius.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Two-circle flow will also result in another merge. In two-circle flow, turn radius is of little importance, because what matters is which fighter can get back to the merging place first. Two-circle flow is a turn rate fight, and the angular advantage usually goes to the aircraft with the higher turn rate at its corner speed. Pilots will often slice turn in order to maximize their turn rate.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: A third option is called vertical flow, in which one or both fighters turn toward the vertical plane. If both fighters go up or down, the fight becomes one-circle flow. If one fighter goes up or down, while the other turns horizontally, it is really a modified version of one-circle flow. However, if one fighter goes up while the other goes down, it becomes two-circle flow.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: In both types of flow, the closest possible merge is desirable to keep the enemy at an angular disadvantage. Although circle flow is often described using neutral merges, the concept applies anytime two aircraft maneuver in relation to each other and the horizon. For instance, the "flat scissors" is an example of one-circle flow, while the "rolling scissors" is an example of two-circle flow.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: The combat spread is the most basic of maneuvers used prior to engagement. A pair of attacking aircraft will separate, often by a distance of one mile horizontal by 1500 feet vertical. The fighter with the lower altitude becomes the defender, while the wingman flies above in "the perch" position. The defender will then attempt to lure their opponents into a good position to be attacked by the wingman.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: A pair of fighters encountering one or two attackers will often use a defensive split. The maneuver consists of both defenders making turns in opposite directions, forcing the attackers to follow only one aircraft. This allows the other defender to circle around, and maneuver behind the attackers.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: A sandwich maneuver begins with two defenders flying line-abreast (side by side at the same altitude), with typically about a mile of lateral separation. When an attacker maneuvers onto the tail of one aircraft, the defender will make a sharp turn away from the wingman. At the same time, the wingman turns in the same direction as the defender. When both fighters turn 90 degrees, they will come into single-file alignment with each other, "sandwiching" the attacker in the middle. Because the attacker is distracted chasing the defender, this allows the wingman to maneuver onto the attacker's tail for an easy shot.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Spotting an attacker approaching from behind, the defender will usually break. The maneuver consists of turning sharply across the attacker's flight path, to increase AOT (angle off tail). The defender is exposed to the attacker's guns for only a brief instant (snapshot). The maneuver works well because the slower moving defender has a smaller turn radius and bigger angular velocity, and a target with a high crossing speed (where the bearing to the target is changing rapidly) is very difficult to shoot. This can also help to force the attacker to overshoot, which may not be true had the turn been made away from the attacker's flight path.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: The counter to a break is often a displacement roll called a barrel roll attack. A barrel roll consists of performing a roll and a loop, completing both at the same time. The result is a helical roll around a straight flight path. The barrel roll attack uses a much tighter loop than the roll, completing a full loop while only executing 3/4 of a roll. The result is a virtual 90 degree turn, using all three dimensions, in the direction opposite of the roll. Rolling away from the defender's break, the attacker completes the roll with the aircraft's nose pointed in the direction of the defender's travel.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: If the attacker has a significant altitude advantage, a high-side guns pass is usually prudent. Sometimes called a "swoop", "boom and zoom", "hit and split", plus a variety of other names, it consists of a powered dive toward the rear quarter of a lower flying opponent. Shooting with the cannons in a single, high-speed pass, the attacker uses excess kinetic energy to disengage from the fight in a zoom climb back to a safe altitude, restoring the potential energy. This allows the attacker to set up another attack and dive again. Surprise is often a key element in this type of attack, and the attackers will often hide in the sun or clouds, stalking their opponents until a good opportunity is presented. A high-side guns pass is a very effective tactic against a more maneuverable opponent, where the turning battle of a dogfight is best avoided.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: An Immelmann trades airspeed for altitude during a 180 degree change in direction. The aircraft performs the first half of a loop, and when completely inverted, rolls to the upright position. The Immelmann is a good offensive maneuver for setting up a high-side guns pass against a lower altitude, slow moving opponent, going in an opposite direction. However, an Immelmann is a poor defensive maneuver, turning the defender into a slow moving target.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: The opposite of an Immelmann is the split S. This maneuver consists of rolling inverted and pulling back on the stick, diving the aircraft into a half loop, which changes the aircraft's direction 180 degrees. The split S is rarely a viable option in combat, as it depletes kinetic energy in a turn and potential energy in a dive. It is most often used to set up a high-side guns pass against a lower but fast moving opponent that is traveling in the opposite direction. Also, the split S is sometimes used as a disengagement tactic.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: A pitchback, also called a Chandelle, is an Immelmann that is executed in some plane other than the vertical. Basically just a pitch turn, the fighter will be at some angle of bank before performing the half loop and roll. Unlike the Immelmann, a pitchback depletes less kinetic energy and is harder for an adversary to track.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: A wingover is a maneuver used to provide a fast, 180 degree turn with a very small turn radius. It consists of a quarter loop into a vertical climb, letting the speed fall as altitude increases, and then a flat-turn over the top, diving to complete a quarter loop at the original altitude, but going in the opposite direction. The wingover is similar to a stall turn, but the fighter does not actually stall, which makes the wingover more difficult for an enemy to track. Unlike an Immelmann or a split-s, the wingover also manages energy by conserving both airspeed and altitude.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: The low Yo-Yo is one of the most useful maneuvers, which sacrifices altitude for an instantaneous increase in speed. This maneuver is accomplished by rolling with the nose low into the turn, and dropping into a steeper slice turn. By utilizing some energy that was stored in the vertical plane, the attacker can quickly decrease range and improve the angle of the attack, literally cutting the corner on the opponent's turn. The pilot then pulls back on the stick, climbing back to the defender's height. This helps slow the aircraft and prevents an overshoot, while placing the energy back into altitude. A defender spotting this maneuver may try to take advantage of the increase in AOT by tightening the turn in order to force an overshoot. The low Yo-Yo is often followed by a high Yo-Yo, to help prevent an overshoot, or several small low Yo-Yos can be used instead of one large maneuver.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: The high Yo-Yo is a very effective maneuver, and very difficult to counter. The maneuver is used to slow the approach of the fast moving attacker while conserving the airspeed energy. The maneuver is performed by reducing the angle at which the aircraft is banking during a turn, and pulling back on the stick, bringing the fighter up into a new plane of travel. The attacker then rolls into a steeper pitch turn, climbing above the defender. The trade-off between airspeed and altitude provides the fighter with a burst of increased maneuverability. This allows the attacker to make a smaller turn, correcting an overshoot, and to pull in behind the defender. Then, by returning to the defender's plane, the attacker restores the lost speed while maintaining energy.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: A lag displacement roll, also called a "lag roll", is a maneuver used to reduce the angle off tail by bringing the attacker from lead pursuit to pure, or even lag pursuit. The maneuver is performed by rolling up and away from the turn, then, when the aircraft's lift vector is aligned with the defender, pulling back on the stick, bringing the fighter back into the turn. This maneuver helps prevent an overshoot caused by the high AOT of lead pursuit, and can also be used to increase the distance between aircraft.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: To prevent an overshoot, an attacker in lead pursuit may need to correct with an out-of-plane maneuver. If the lateral separation is excessively high, the attacker will probably use a displacement roll. However, if the lateral separation is low enough, the attacker will likely use a high Yo-Yo. The high Yo-Yo defense can be a good tactic in these situations. The maneuver is performed when the attacker rolls away from the turn to begin the correction. The defender will begin to relax the turn by easing off of the stick, called "unloading", which causes both turn radius and speed to increase, restoring the fighter's lost energy. If the defender maintains the same angle of bank, the subtle maneuver will be very difficult for the attacker to spot. When the attacker completes the out-of-plane maneuver, the defending fighter has regained some of its energy. This allows the defender to, once again, turn harder into the attack, regaining an angular advantage over the higher energy attacker. If the attacker is surprised by the maneuver, a high Yo-Yo defense might even cause an overshoot.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: An unloaded extension is a disengagement (bug out) maneuver often used by the pilot whenever there is enough energy and separation. The maneuver consists of slipping into a steep, straight dive and applying full thrust. Removing all g-force load from the aircraft causes it to accelerate at a very high rate, allowing the pilot to vastly increase range, or "extend", and possibly to escape.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: If a defender breaks suddenly, causing the attacker to overshoot, the defender may reverse the turn and move in behind the attacker. An unloaded extension is usually the attacker's best option, using the energy advantage to escape the slower moving defender. An unloaded extension is usually not recommended against a higher energy opponent. However, in many circumstances, such as when an attacker performs a high Yo-Yo too steeply, an unloaded extension is a viable option for the defender.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: The scissors are a series of turn reversals and flight path overshoots intended to slow the relative forward motion (downrange travel) of the aircraft in an attempt to either force a dangerous overshoot, on the part of the defender, or prevent a dangerous overshoot on the attacker's part. The defender's goal is to stay out of phase with the attacker, trying to prevent a guns solution, while the attacker tries to get in phase with the defender. The advantage usually goes to the more maneuverable aircraft. There are two types of scissor maneuvers, called flat scissors and rolling scissors.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Flat scissors, also called horizontal scissors, usually occur after a low-speed overshoot in a horizontal direction. The defender reverses the turn, attempting to force the attacker to fly out in front and to spoil aim. The attacker then reverses, trying to remain behind the defender, and the two aircraft begin a weaving flight pattern.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Rolling scissors, also called vertical scissors, tend to happen after a high-speed overshoot from above. The defender reverses into a vertical climb and into a barrel roll over the top, forcing the attacker to attempt to follow. The advantage lies in the aircraft that can pull its nose through the top or bottom of the turn faster. In battles with aircraft that have a thrust-to-weight ratio of less than one the aircraft will quickly lose altitude, and crashing into the ground becomes a possibility. According to author Mike Spick, "Disengagement from a vertical rolling scissors is best made with a split-s and a lot of hope."


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: Guns defense maneuvering, or "guns-D", is the last resort for a defender that fails to outmaneuver the attacker. Guns-D is a series of random changes in the defenders flight path, intended to spoil the attacker's aim by presenting a constantly shifting target, and, hopefully, to maneuver out of the bullet stream (hose). It consists of arbitrary speed changes, yaws, skids, slips, pitch-ups, and rolls, and is often referred to as "jinking". Because the attacker must aim ahead of the opponent, the primary goal in guns-D is to disorient the attacker's aim by keeping the nose pointed in a different direction than the velocity vector (the direction of travel), and is very effective at preventing the attacker from achieving a suitable guns solution. However, guns-D maneuvering still leaves the defender susceptible to stray bullets and "lucky shot" hits, and does little to improve the relative positional situation. Thus, it is only employed as a last-ditch defensive effort when nothing else works.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: A high-g barrel roll is a combination of a loop and a snap roll. A high g barrel roll is a last-ditch defensive maneuver, performed when the attacker has achieved a suitable guns solution, in order to cause an overshoot. The high-g barrel roll is a violent maneuver which is performed much more aggressively than a normal barrel roll. Range is critical to the success of the roll, and the defender will usually turn very hard, or employ other measures to draw the opponent very close before performing the roll. The roll is executed by applying hard back-stick pressure, creating the high g-forces, and adding hard rudder input to assist the ailerons in rolling the fighter. A high-g barrel roll can be performed "over-the-top", or it can be performed "underneath", which is accomplished by rolling upside-down and beginning the maneuver from the inverted position. The high-g barrel roll is an energy-depleting maneuver that rarely causes the attacker to fly out in front, but usually will result in a flight path overshoot, a flat scissors, or, at the very least, will temporarily disrupt the attacker's aim.


title: Basic fighter maneuvers

text: A defender that fails to outmaneuver the attacker can quickly become "out of airspeed and ideas". The defensive spiral is a maneuver used by the defender when the kinetic energy becomes depleted and other last-ditch maneuvers can not successfully be implemented. The maneuver consists of dropping the nose low during the turn and going into a spiral dive, using gravity to supply the energy needed to continue evasive action. The defensive spiral becomes a rolling scissors performed straight down. The defender's goal is to stay out of phase with the attacker until the ground is dangerously close. The advantage usually goes to the aircraft that can decelerate quicker, and the defender will often cut the power and extend the speedbrakes in an effort to force an overshoot. If this attempt is unsuccessful, the defender will usually pull out of the dive at the last possible second, hoping to cause the attacker to crash into the ground.


title: Giant

text: In folklore, giants (from Ancient Greek: "gigas", cognate giga-) are beings of human-like appearance, but are at times prodigious in size and strength or bear an otherwise notable appearance. The word "giant" is first attested in 1297 from Robert of Gloucester's chronicle. It is derived from the "Gigantes" () of Greek mythology.


title: Giant

text: Fairy tales such as "Jack the Giant Killer" have formed the modern perception of giants as dimwitted ogres, sometimes said to eat humans, while other giants tend to eat the livestock. The antagonist in "Jack and the Beanstalk" is often described as a giant. In some more recent portrayals, like those of Jonathan Swift and Roald Dahl, some giants are both intelligent and friendly.


title: Giant

text: Giants appear in the folklore of cultures worldwide as they represent a relatively simple concept. Representing the human body enlarged to the point of being monstrous, giants evoke terror and remind humans of their body's frailty and mortality. They are often portrayed as monsters and antagonists, but there are exceptions. Some giants intermingle with humans in a friendly way and can even be part of human families with their offspring being portrayed as regular humans.


title: Giant

text: Genesis tells of the Nephilim before and after Noah's Flood. According to , the Nephilim were destroyed in the Flood, but Nephilim are reported after the Flood, including:


title: Giant

text: The Book of Numbers includes the discouraging report by the spies who Moses sent into Canaan: “We can’t attack those people; they are stronger than we are. (...) All the people we saw there are of great size. We saw the Nephilim there (the descendants of Anak come from the Nephilim). We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them.” However, the Book of Joshua, describing the actual conquest of Canaan in a later generation, makes no reference to such people living there.


title: Giant

text: The Bible also tells of Gog and Magog, who later entered European folklore, and of the famous battle between David and the Philistine Goliath. While Goliath is often portrayed as a giant in retellings of the Biblical narrative, he appears to be significantly smaller than other giants, biblical or otherwise. The Masoretic Text version of the Book of Samuel gives his height as six cubits and one span (possibly ), while the Septuagint, the 1st-century Jewish historian Flavius Josephus and the 2nd–1st-centuries BCE Dead Sea Scrolls give Goliath's height as four cubits and one span (possibly ). For comparison, the Anakites are described as making the Israelites seem like grasshoppers. See also Gibborim.


title: Giant

text: Josephus also described the Amorites as giants in his "Antiquities of the Jews", circa 93CE, indicating that some sort of fossils may have been on display at that time: "For which reason they removed their camp to Hebron; and when they had taken it, they slew all the inhabitants. There were till then left the race of giants, who had bodies so large, and countenances so entirely different from other men, that they were surprising to the sight, and terrible to the hearing. The bones of these men are still shown to this very day, unlike to any credible relations of other men."


title: Giant

text: Hayk was known as the founder of the Armenian state. Hayk was part of a race of giants who helped construct the Tower of Babel. Ancient historian Movses Khorenatsi wrote, "Hayk was handsome and personable, with curly hair, sparkling eyes and strong arms. Among the giants he was the bravest and most famous, opponent of all who raised their hand to become absolute ruler over the giants and heroes."


title: Giant

text: Mount Nemrut is known to have received its name from an Armenian tradition in which Nimrod was killed by an arrow shot by Hayk during a massive battle between two rival armies of giants to the south-east of Lake Van.


title: Giant

text: Giants are rough but generally righteous characters of formidable strength living in the hills of the Basque Country. Giants stand for the Basque people reluctant to convert to Christianity who decide to stick to the old lifestyle and customs in the forest. Sometimes they hold the secret of ancient techniques and wisdom unknown to the Christians, like in the legend of San Martin Txiki, while their most outstanding feature is their strength. It follows that in many legends all over the Basque territory the giants are held accountable for the creation of many stone formations, hills and ages-old megalithic structures (dolmens, etc.), with similar explanations provided in different spots.


title: Giant

text: However, giants show different variants and forms, they are most frequently referred to as jentilak and mairuak, while as individuals they can be represented as Basajaun ("the lord of the forests"), Sanson (variation of the biblical Samson), Errolan (based on the Frankish army general Roland who fell dead at the Battle of Roncevaux Pass) or even Tartalo (a one-eyed giant akin to the Greek Cyclops Polyphemus).


title: Giant

text: In Bulgarian mythology, giants called ispolini inhabited the Earth before modern humans. They lived in the mountains, fed on raw meat and often fought against dragons. Ispolini were afraid of blackberries which posed a danger of making the giants trip and die, so they offered sacrifices to that plant.


title: Giant

text: There are tales of giants in the northern Chilean port town of Caldera telling of giants who play with ships moving them from one port to another. Tales of the same area also tells of giants who are able to crush humans with their feet and when laying down to sleep being so long as to reach from the mountains to the sea. In some stories the giants are black humanoids or black bulls. In southern Chile there are stories of giants said to belong to certain volcanoes such as Calbuco and Osorno.


title: Giant

text: The mythical city of Tololo Pampa in northern Chile is said to be guarded by a giant known by various names including; "Pata Larga", "Gigante Minero" and "Minero Gigante". The giant enters to the mountains to obtain riches to the princess of Tololo Pampa. If a person manages to watch the giant while he works folklore says the person will be blessed with good luck in the rest of his life.


title: Giant

text: In Greek mythology, the "Gigantes" (γίγαντες) were (according to the poet Hesiod) the children of Uranus (Ουρανός) and Gaia (Γαία) (spirits of the sky and the earth) where some depictions had them with snake-like legs. They were involved in a conflict with the Olympian gods called the "Gigantomachy" (Γιγαντομαχία) when Gaia had them attack Mount Olympus. This battle was eventually settled when the hero Heracles decided to help the Olympians. The Greeks believed some of them, like Enceladus, to lie buried from that time under the earth and that their tormented quivers resulted in earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.


title: Giant

text: Herodotus in Book 1, Chapter 68, describes how the Spartans uncovered in Tegea the body of Orestes, which was seven cubits long  —  approximately 3.73m, or about 12feet 3inches. In his book "The Comparison of Romulus with Theseus", Plutarch describes how the Athenians uncovered the body of Theseus, which was "of more than ordinary size." The kneecaps of Ajax were exactly the size of a discus for the boy's pentathlon, wrote Pausanias. A boy's discus was about in diameter, while a normal adult patella is around , suggesting Ajax may have been nearly 14feet (over 4m) tall.


title: Giant

text: The Cyclopes are also compared to giants due to their huge size (e.g.Polyphemus, son of Poseidon and Thoosa and nemesis of Odysseus in Homer's "The Odyssey"). The Elder Cyclopes were the children of Gaia and Uranus, and later made Zeus' "master thunderbolt", Poseidon's trident, and Hades' "helm of darkness", during the Titanomachy.


title: Giant

text: The Hecatoncheires are giants that have 100 arms and 50 heads who were also the children of Gaia and Uranus.