According to contemporary accounts one of the nicest, warmest human beings ever encountered was John Cunningham, the outstanding pioneer British night fighter ace of WWII with 20 odd victories. Yet he showed no mercy to any of his victims. Indeed night fighting is even more a case of cold blooded murder than day fighting.
Cecil Lewis probably said it best when he stated:
" In all air fighting (and indeed in every branch of aerial warfare) there is an essential in which it differs from war on the ground: it's absolute cold-bloodedness. You could not lose your temper with an aeroplane. You cannot 'see red'. You certainly cannot resort to 'Dutch' courage. Any of these may fog your judgement - and that spells death. Like duelling, air fighting required a set steely courage, drained of all emotion, fined down to a tense and deadly effort of will. The Angel of Death is less callous, aloof, and implacable than a fighting pilot when he dives.
Given that Lewis served with such notable aces as Ball, McCudden, Rhys-Davies and others, and was an ace himself, the above is a very illuminating comment on the general state of mind to air fighting.