Wildcat tactics and the full Thach Weave formation

Could Japanese pilots defeat the Thach Weave with high-speed attacks that left little time to fire or for the supporting fighter to respond?

Such attacks could work against an individual aircraft or pair, but the full formation used several mutually supporting pairs and made that approach much harder.

High-speed attacks reduced the time available for firing and for a supporting fighter to react. Against an isolated aircraft or pair, that approach could work. The full Thach Weave described here used several mutually supporting pairs. Pairs also operated at different heights, so a successful approach to one element could bring the attacker into danger from another. Squadron organization changes the problem compared with the familiar two-aircraft illustration.