The Scissors The Scissors is an aerial dog fight ing maneuver , commonly used by military fighter pilots before the advent of high thrust - to - weight fighters ( which allow for extended maneuvering in the vertical plane ) in the late 1950s to mid - 1960s and later , and before the perfection of the all - aspect air - to - air missile , and reliable BVR ( beyond - visual - range ) weapons . Thus , although still taught as a basic fighter maneuver useful in a guns - only or short - range missile encounter , the scissors were most commonly encountered by pilots in aerial combat during World War II and the Korean War , and much less frequently since . In fact , for many years now fighter pilots flying aircraft with even a reasonable thrust - to - weight ratio and average wing loading are well advised to avoid engaging in a scissors maneuver , since any turning , rolling or slow - speed disadvantage the pilot ' s aircraft might have with respect to his opponent ( or pilot skill in energy assessment and management techniques ) will quickly become evident in the scissors , and lead to his defeat in short order . Basic Fighter Maneuvering theory recognizes two different types of scissors maneuvers ; the flat scissors and the rolling scissors . The Flat Scissors . The flat scissors is the simpler of the two to explain . The flat scissors maneuver commonly results when two fighters of similar capability encounter one another at similar speeds and in the same plane of motion , and the fighter approaches the defending " Bandit " ( enemy fighter ) , usually from the bandit ' s rear hemisphere , and has failed to press an initial positional and angular advantage into a kill , and has " overshot " , or passed behind the bandit . ( To overshoot is to fly from an AOT ( angle - off - tail : the angle between the nose of the attacker and an imaginary extended line from the nose through the tail of the bandit and extending behind it into the air ) of less than 90 degrees to an AOT of greater than 90 degrees . ) As such , an attacking pilot who finds himself in a flat scissors has transitioned from an offensive to a neutral engagement , and has lost his offensive advantage , as it represents a failure to press an initial attack into a kill , and the scissors can be difficult to disengage from without being exposed to the weapons of the bandit at close range . The bandit pilot is often surprised initially by what was likely an unobserved attack from the rear , and while he has survived a highly defensive situation that has become a somewhat neutral encounter after the overshoot , the bandit pilot must still react quickly . After the co - planar overshoot , if the bandit chooses to remain engaged with a nose - to - nose turn ( that is , a turn toward the attacker in the general direction of the attacker ' s direction of flight ) to either gain the advantage , or maintain the neutral situation , the flat scissors is a common result . Once initiated by the bandit , it is also very difficult for the bandit to disengage from a flat scissors without being exposed to danger from the weapons of the other aircraft . An experienced and patient bandit might be able to turn the scissors to his advantage , however . The bandit possessing superior turning capability may also initiate a flat scissors offensively , although this is certainly a dangerous gambit ( as it involves allowing the attacker to approach to close range from behind ) , but one that may be forced upon the bandit by the attacking fighter ' s superior engine power or speed : after becoming aware of a more or less co - planar attack from his rear hemisphere , the bandit uses co - planar energy techniques ( using power reduction , uncoordinated flight , flaps , slats or speed brakes ) without moving out of the initial plane of the attack . By remaining in the same plane of the attack , the bandit might be able initially to deceive the attacker about the two airplanes ' rate of closure , quickly placing the attacker into a position in which a successful attack cannot be made due to close proximity , too much angle - off - tail , or both ; in the same circumstances , by not adopting hard evasive maneuvering , the bandit might also convince the attacker to reduce speed to prevent the overshoot , ( the attacker has thereby given up a major advantage in the hopes of getting a quick kill , believing that the bandit has not seen him ) , and thereby , however , mistakenly played into the strengths of the slower but better turning bandit . In any case , if both pilots ' reaction to a co - planar overshoot with only a minor air - speed differential is a co - planar nose - to - nose turn , then a flat scissors will often result . The goal of the flat scissors is to get into a successful firing position ; the attacker and bandit each pull their fighters ' noses toward the other , executing consecutive reversing nose - to - nose turns , while trying carefully to use energy depletion methods , or using slightly oblique , out - of - plane turns to get behind the enemy . The resulting flight path looks like scissors in the sense that both fighters approach each other , cross over , and then separate again , over and over while the scissors continues . The maneuver results when both fighters initially bank ( or " roll " ) about 90 degrees toward the opponent and turn ( In the theory of fighter combat turning is often called " pulling " , due to the pilots ' efforts to tighten their turns by pulling back on the control stick - the banked attitude would cause the aircraft to turn in any case in a sustained " 1 G " turn , but pulling back on the stick serves to " tighten " ( decrease the radius of ) the turn . All level turns result in a loss of speed and energy , and the tighter the turn - the more " pull " used - the greater the resulting loss of speed and energy , and in the pilot experiencing higher " g - forces " in the turn ) toward the opponent until their flight paths cross , at which point each pilot flies outward trying to assess if he has an offensive advantage or disadvantage , and then reverses his turn ( to avoid flying out too far into a disadvantageous position , where a quick turn " reversal " ( a 180 degree roll accompanied by the resulting turn ) by the enemy would result in the enemy pulling in behind the pilot ) by rolling opposite the initial turn by 180 degrees of bank , and pulling toward the opponent again . During the repeated brief passes it is occasionally possible to get off what is called a " snap shot " ( A snap shot is an opportunistic shot of brief duration , brief because of the rapid change of the LOS ( line - of - sight ) to the target caused by the aircraft ' s maneuvering in different planes of motion . The preferable " tracking shot " opportunity lasts longer ; as long as the attacker can maintain a constant LOS to the bandit , accomplished by maneuvering in the same plane of motion as the bandit . The process of getting into the same plane of motion as a bandit and setting up a tracking shot is called " getting into the saddle " or " saddling up " . ) at the opponent fighter , although due to the typically close range of the scissors , usually only guns may be used for this " snap shot " . This process of 180 degree rolls and reversed turns can be repeated many times while each pilot seeks a positional advantage through energy management , and seeks to avoid a disadvantage . In the flat scissors , the turns and maneuvering are accomplished approximately all on one plane , an imaginary flat surface ( thus the term " flat " scissors ) that is not necessarily horizontal , although the horizontal is a common case . The flat scissors continues until either one fighter ( usually the fighter with better rolling or instantaneous turning characteristics ) gains an advantage ( usually due to an ability to reduce speed effectively while retaining sufficient roll and turn response from his aircraft ) and gets behind his opponent and successfully shoots him down ( with either a snap shot or tracking shot ) , or one of the pilots maneuvers successfully to disengage from the scissors , and gets to a safe distance to make an escape , or attempt a new attack . The flat scissor if flown to its conclusion is usually a contest of who can fly more slowly while maintaining sufficient controlled maneuverability to get into position for a kill as quickly as possible . Counter - maneuvers to the flat scissors . As mentioned above , the objective of the flat scissors is to coerce an attacker with superior power or initial speed and energy to overshoot and engage in a turning fight which he will probably lose if the attacker has inferior turning characteristics than the bandit . For this attacker the objective is to avoid the scissors against such a bandit . There are at least two ways an attacker can avoid becoming engaged in a flat scissors . Vertical . The vertical counter - maneuver is especially effective for an attacker who possesses an advantage in thrust - to - weight ratio ( sometimes called " power - loading " ) or energy over the bandit , but who conversely may have a worse instantaneous and / or sustained turn rate than the bandit . Such an attacker who recognizes that he is about to overshoot a bandit could , upon seeing the bandit ' s initial turn , pull up into a vertical zoom or power climb or a high yo - yo ( a climbing turn in the same direction as the defender ' s horizontal turn ) . Even if the attacker has overshot the bandit this vertical maneuver will help to preserve the attacker ' s total energy and allow the attacker at or near the top of the climb to nose down and re - establish contact with the bandit ' s rear quarter . The bandit at this time having probably pulled a hard turn will have lost energy as a consequence of the " high - G " turn . This vertical maneuver also has allowed the attacker to put distance between itself and the bandit that might serve to foil a shot due to being out of range . The attacker is now in the position to dive in for another attack , or to disengage , therefore maintaining its offensive stance . The bandit , on the other hand , has depleted its energy in its initial turn , is below the attacker , and is possibly in a worse position than when the fight originally started . Note however that the aim of the attacker possessing an aircraft with superior power or energy , or inferior turning capabilities , is to avoid the scissors maneuver . Horizontal . For an attacker with a lower thrust - to - weight ratio or initial energy but who possesses a turn performance advantage , a better option upon seeing the bandit perform the initial hard turn is to take advantage of the bandit ' s error and avoid the overshoot . This might require reducing energy / air speed using flaps , reduced throttle settings , or other means at its disposal . Energy is valuable , and should only be depleted as necessary to avoid the overshoot . Excess depletion of energy is never a good idea . The goal here is for the attacker to remain in the rear quarter of the bandit , and for the attacker to employ its turning advantage to turn inside the bandit ' s turn , seeking a tracking shot opportunity . Thus the point again is to use an advantage to avoid entering the scissors maneuver . If the bandit with inferior turning capabilities commits the serious error of engaging in a flat scissors , then his inferior turn performance will soon become apparent , and the skilled attacker can quickly maneuver behind the bandit to obtain a successful shot . If the aircraft are of similar power and turning capabilities , however , a scissors might be unavoidable , and the fight becomes one of the skill of the pilots involved . However , an attacker is often in hostile airspace , and will have limited time due to fuel constraints to engage in a prolonged turning fight . This puts an attacker , even in a similarly capable aircraft , at a significant disadvantage . The Rolling Scissors . The rolling scissors maneuver is somewhat different . Like the flat scissors , the rolling scissors maneuver is typically an engagement of two fighters of similar capabilities with respect to their thrust - to - weight ratios ( and thus similar climbing capabilities ) , turning characteristics and wing loading . Whereas the flat scissors typically results from a failed attack resulting in a slow speed differential overshoot of the defender by the attacker , the rolling scissors usually results from a failed attack at higher speed , and overshoot . The rolling scissors is also often initiated by the attacker first diving from a higher altitude at the bandit and overshooting the bandit in the vertical , as well as horizontal plane . As the attacking aircraft makes its failed attack and overshoots , the bandit immediately initiates a pull - up ( a " zoom " climb , trading airspeed for altitude ) into the vertical to further aggravate the attacker ' s overshoot by slowing the bandit ' s speed while maintaining its total energy , and increasing the speed of separation of the two aircraft . Both of these factors contribute to a larger overshoot , and an increased offensive potential for the bandit . Then the bandit rolls his aircraft toward the attacker ( In ACM terminology this is called " putting his lift vector " on the opponent . The lift vector is more or less a line perpendicular to the plane of an aircraft ' s wings . ) that has overshot him , and pulls his nose toward the attacker . This move is similar to a turn reversal in the horizontal plane , and both of these moves give the bandit the offensive after an overshoot . A skilled bandit at this point might be able to make a successful snap shot with guns , or possibly a short range missile shot , and no scissors results . More typically what happens next in the rolling scissors is that the initial attacker , aware of his vulnerability caused by the overshoot , also rolls his aircraft , and pulls his nose toward the bandit ' s aircraft . Due to the two components of the initial overshoot ( vertical and horizontal ) , if the pilots keep attempting to turn their noses toward their opponent , then energy management , elements of roll and turn ( as in the flat scissors ; although in the rolling scissors there are no reverses of turn ) , as well as climbs and descents will be required to maintain maneuvering that might , if successful , result in a position from which a shot can be made . What evolves therefore in the rolling scissors is a maneuver that is essentially two aircraft barrel - rolling ( An aileron roll is a roll around the longitudinal axis of the aircraft ( essentially the fuselage ) . A barrel roll is different , involving rolling and looping motions , climbing and descending and turning while the aircraft rolls around its longitudinal axis . The barrel roll has a vertical component which the aileron roll lacks . Unfortunately , the two maneuvers are often confused in many contexts , or are used as if they are interchangeable terms . They are not . The " snap roll " is yet another maneuver , commonly seen in aerobatics performances , and is similar to a flat spin ( thus involving an aerodynamic stall ) and is not typically of any use in ACM ) around each other ' s flight path , which might look like two interwoven cork - screws , or a double helix . The more barrel rolls that are flown in the rolling scissors , the more nearly the rolls become vertical only , as each pilot attempts to deplete enough forward speed to place his fighter behind the other . By imagining the difference between the initial conditions of the flat and rolling scissors , one can see how that the addition of the vertical component of the initial overshoot turns the rolling scissor engagement into a three dimensional rolling encounter . Unlike the flat scissors which results in a fight to roll and turn the plane quickly , reverse turn quickly , and attempt to deplete energy in order to get behind the other aircraft to set up a successful shot , the contest in the rolling scissors is still one of successfully controlling forward motion so as to maneuver behind the other aircraft ( get " on his six " in fighter pilot terminology ) . In the rolling scissors , the successful pilot is the one who best manages his energy in the climbs and descents of the barrel rolls , as they eventually come to have a larger overall effect on the reduction of forward speed than the simpler strategies used to reduce thrust , add drag or time the rolls and turns in the flat scissors . The rolling scissors decidedly favors an aircraft with a power advantage over a bandit , so it is of some offensive value even to this day , although it is a difficult attacking maneuver and is very unforgiving of poor technique . To disengage from a rolling scissors , the best opportunity is when the pilot is on the downward part of one of his barrel rolls , preferably behind his opponent ( but obviously not quite in a position to get a shot ) , and then accelerate in a power dive to try to extend away to a safe distance to escape , or initiate a new attack . Situational awareness . Situational awareness in both of the scissors is critical , as flight paths become very predictable to an outside observer , and an unseen enemy could easily approach this mentally demanding situation and attack with near impunity . Also , particularly in the rolling scissors ( due to the vertical component of the maneuvering ) , awareness of the ground and other obstacles must be maintained while most of the pilots ' attention is demanded by the close and hard maneuvering required of the scissors engagements . As stated above , the modern fighter pilot is well advised to avoid the scissors engagements , as they do not favor the characteristics of many modern fighter aircraft : aircraft with medium - to - high wing loading , powerful engines ( and attendant high rates of climb allowing for significant maintained vertical maneuvering capabilities ) , and long - range missile weapons . The scissors are also very physically and mentally taxing on the pilots involved , and can lead to a dangerous loss of situational awareness due to fixation on the one other enemy aircraft involved , leading to vulnerability to other enemies that may be flying in the area unobserved , or ground threats such as surface - to - air missiles . References . " This article has been simplified for civilian reference . " " The above reference has a few useful diagrams and descriptions , but also contains many factual and many grammatical errors . " " Shaw ' s book is the standard English language reference on the subject of ACM . It is used as a text - book at the " Top - Gun " naval aviator school . "