Why Did People Shoot at Planes with Rifles During WWII?
It's a natural human instinct to hide when in danger, especially when being shot at. There's nothing wrong with that—it’s just part of survival. But hiding alone can lower morale.
When soldiers shoot at attacking planes, even with rifles, they stop feeling like helpless victims. Instead, they become fighters. Instead of just trying to avoid death, they're actively trying to take down the enemy.
That's why soldiers were often encouraged to fire at planes. In fact, the Soviet army had a manual titled, "How to Shoot Down Enemy Airplanes and Paratroopers with Rifles and Light Machine Guns."
Now, I want to clarify a few things.
First, shooting rifles at planes wasn’t completely pointless. Yes, it wasn’t as effective as using anti-aircraft weapons, but it still had some benefits. The most important was boosting morale. When soldiers felt they were fighting back, it lifted their spirits. Plus, shooting at planes made it harder for enemy pilots to focus. It wasn’t like target practice for them anymore—they had to worry about being hit.
There was also a very slim chance of doing serious damage or even shooting down a plane. While rare, such a success would give soldiers a huge morale boost.
Second, even when faster jets came into play, this tactic wasn’t totally useless. For example, in Vietnam, there are stories of soldiers hitting planes with rifles. One is from Steven Coonts’ book Flight of the Intruder, where a bullet kills an A-6 navigator. Another example comes from Boris Kurkin’s The Dragon Jaw, where Vietnamese soldiers fired into specific areas to create a barrier of bullets, aiming to hit jets flying overhead.
Soviet training manuals also mentioned this kind of tactic, even against fast jets like the F-4 Phantom, F-111, and Harrier. Although these jets were quick, shooting at them was still seen as a way to disrupt their attacks.
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Abdullah Cheema
I’m Abdullah, a software engineer from Pakistan now in Saudi Arabia, eager to share my Python programming journey from basics to advanced techniques.
