finger four

Finger four, with four planes spaced like fingers on a hand, one on one side of the leader and two on the other side, is a popular combat formation.

…and this flexible formation—called “finger-four” by English-speaking airmen—was eventually adopted by all the major air forces in World War II. An exception was the U.S. Navy, whose fighter pilots developed a system called the “Thach weave,” whereby two fighters would cover one another from attack from the rear. This…