The high loss rates could not easily be made good by the flying schools, which were under intense pressure to supply crew to every combat theater. The result was a sharp reduction in the length of time devoted to training, which was exacerbated by the careful use of fuel. The hours devoted to training for a new German fighter pilot fell from 210 in 1942 to 112 by 1944; operational training was reduced from 50 hours to 20, and crews could be sent to squadrons with only a few hours’ training on the frontline aircraft they were to fly in combat.
