I guess the reporter as usual has done a little research. If one looks you will note that the British Spitfire and hurricane both can equipped with .303 calibre weapons they did a fine job of knocking down aircraft. .50 is better of course but that does not change the fact that .303 and .30 us just like their counterparts 7.7 Japanese 7.92 German were effective at shooting down aircraft
All I can say is when I take my Barrett to the range, when I let go of the first round everyone at the range stops what they are doing and stares. It is quite the attention getter. :)