Nikademus
what I meant was prior to the BoB fighters patrolled or escorted. During the BoB the Luftwaffe were met by interceptors who knew how high they were and approximately where they were going before they took off, that must be a huge advantage. As you said the LW had to learn new tactics for new conditions (difficult when the head honcho is a buffoon) that isnt the fault of the plane or the pilots.
True, but remember that Dowding's objective were the bombers, so even in cases where the defenders knew the approx altitudes of the defending fighters, this did not automatically mean that the escorts would defend or attack at a disadvantage or be the target. It also does not automatically mean the scrambled fighters will gain altitude advantage in time in all cases.
Detection and vectoring of defending interceptors itself does not automatically present the escort fighters with a radically different situation vs. an escort formation facing an enemy bereft of radar direction. What it ensures is that the bomber streams and the escorts wil bel opposed and/or opposed strongly more often than not and reduces the need for constant patroling or CAP'ing. Once the two enemies spot each other however, the mechanics remain the same at which point it does come down to pilots, planes and tactics.
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