Although the aircraft was obsolete and slow, the pilots took advantage of its exceptional maneuverability; it also had a maximum speed that was lower than the stalling speed of both the Messerschmitt Bf 109 and the Focke-Wulf Fw 190, which made it very difficult for German pilots to shoot down, with the exception of fighter ace Josef Kociok, who grounded the regiment for an entire night by shooting down three or four of their planes on the night of 31 July  1 August 1943.
The aircraft's limitations as an outdated and slow machine were offset by its exceptional agility; it also had a lower top speed than that of both the Messerschmitt Bf 109 and the Focke-Wulf Fw 190, which made it extremely difficult for German pilots to engage in aerial combat, with the exception of ace Josef Kociok, who successfully shot down three or four enemy planes on the night of July 31-August 1, 1943.