#1 piston fighter?

Hartmann, Marseilles, Roedel and company to run up
some admirable individual scores (and more power to them).

Roedel? Whoinheckizat? Do you mean Rudel, the Stuka pilot?

However, the
efforts of none of these experten was of much use to the Reich.

Rudel destroyed over 500 Soviet tanks. How "much use" is one soldier supposed
to be to his country? Hartmann and Marseille destroyed the equivelent of an
enemy fighter wing between them. That's "some use" at least.

The major question, to my mind, when assessing fighter aircraft and "Aces"
is: what contribution did their collective (as opposed to individual)
successes or failures make toward the achievment of their nation's war
aims?

All fighter pilots are tactical assets and by nature will have few
opportunities to turn the course of the war by themselves.

despite not having a Barkhorn or Sakai amongst them, while
frustrating the Axis' aims at practically every turn.

You're for forgetting Basil Embry and Col Don Blakeslee, among MANY others,
that at least matched or exceeded the combat /leadership abilities of the two
fine aviators that you mention.

v.r
Gordon
====(A+C====
USN SAR Aircrew

"Got anything on your radar, SENSO?"
"Nothing but my forehead, sir."