Yes, even though these top aces were incredibly skilled and brave, as one of them estimated "luck is about 50% of it". It amazes me how it's possible. Take Erich Hartmann, the top ace of ww2. He flew over 1400 missions with 352 kills, and was never shot down. It's truly incredible.

For anyone who is interested, there's an american documentary from 1944 (in color!) on youtube which has the best real air combat footage I've ever seen. It's really worth a look, even if you skip the boring parts There's a guy who lands a plane on the aircraft carrier with the windshield covered in blood after being shot in the face by the AA gun. http://youtu.be/B5JbXRDOP60

I gotta say, I wish I was as tough as my grandfathers generation...