Very true on the P-40 and B-24.
” In 1943 the 325th won two major engagements. On July 1, 22 checker-tailed P-40s were making a fighter sweep over southern Italy when they were jumped by 40 Bf-109s. After an intense air battle, the result was half of the German aircraft shot down for the loss of a single P-40. There was a similar situation on the 30th of July, again over Italy, when 35 Bf-109s ambushed 20 P-40s. On this occasion, 21 German fighters were shot down, again for the loss of a single P-40. Because the pilots of the 325th were trained to maximize the P-40’s strengths and minimize its weaknesses, it became a lethal opponent for the German fighters. The final record of “The Checker-Tailed Clan’s” P-40s was 135 Axis planes shot down (96 were Bf-109s), for only 17 P-40s lost in combat.”
IIRC, it was Claire Chennault (Flying Tiger fame) and his pilots who developed those tactics for their P-40’s. They dove on fighters/bombers for a firing pass and then pulled up into a zoom climb to regain altitude. Rinse and repeat. Avoid dogfighting against opponents with superior maneuverability (e.g., Zeros or BF-109’s).