nearly three to one
For here there was no barricades or tactically advantageous points , only a three dimensional sea of emptiness in all directions , here and there pricked by planet islands , themselves destructible and a hindrance to mobility . For this reason both sides had attempted to charge , and the resulting collision of forces at once split the conflagration into a dissipated struggle without borders , boundaries or points of reference . And for the Coalition pilots and vessel commanders , this proved to be fatal . Outnumbered nearly three to one by more modern , swifter craft , needing to be watchful of every quarter at once , aware that soon the Dreadnought would add its considerable firepower to the fray , and thus needing an early knockout ... it was impossible . They fought with courage and intensity , but so did the Americans . And though they knew it was no game -LRB- some of the Americans did also -RRB- , and though they fought for home and family , this could not make them react quicker or shoot straighter than their more youthful counterparts , whose duel ambition -- to stay alive and cover themselves with glory -- combined with simply better equipment to give them the clear and early upper hand . There would be no repeat of the Battle of Britain .