I have photocopies of the official flyoff the US Navy and Army Air Force did in late 1944 verses two pretty new Zeke 52 that we captured on Saipan. The Navy used a FM-2 Wildcat, F6F-3 Hellcat, and a F4U-1 Corsair, while the AAF used a P-51D, P-47D, and a P-38 Lightning. The Zekes were flown by test pilots who had time to familiarize themselves with the planes, and they were combat-loaded with max internal fuel and gun ammunition. Based on the flyoffs, the FM-2 Wildcat was quite comparable to the Zeke 52, and would have been a very useful clone for dissimilar combat training. Both the Corsair and Hellcat had a pretty big performance edge, except in turning combat. However, all three Navy fighters had a big edge in maneuverability over the AAF fighters, including the P-51, and except for the Wildcat, were quite comparable in speed, with an edge to the P-51. The P-51 in turn had a big edge in maneuverability over the Thunderbolt and Lightning, no surprise there. Given the combat edge the P-51 had over the late-model Me-109 and FW-190, the Hellcat and Corsair would have been very tough adversaries for the German planes.
However, the edge over the Zeke was not that overwhelming that a good pilot in a Zeke could not have a chance of taking down a Hellcat or Corsair, but it would be difficult. However, not a 1 in 75 chance as indicated elsewhere in a post on the Avalon Hill boards. I play a wide range of naval miniature games, and I am experimenting with using different die for each aircraft based on how it compares to its opponent. For Wildcat verses Zeke, each get a six-sided die, winner shoots down loser, tie, both go home damaged. For Hellcat or Corsair verses Zeke, I am thinking of a twenty-sided die for the US planes and a six-sided die for the Zeke, with a good Zeke pilot getting an eight-sided die roll, and an expert getting a ten-sided die roll. Have to work with that a bit and see how it works. The radial engine of the US Navy fighters and the Thunderbolt makes them about twice as survivable as the P-51 if hit by enemy fire. In Europe, a P-51 hit be enemy fire had a 20% chance of getting home, a P-47 hit had a 40% chance of getting back. The Zeke had a radial engine, but were also more lightly built than the Navy fighters, so I would rate it as comparable in survivability to the P-51.
A major problem for the Zeke in tackling US Navy fighters was a limited ammunition supply. The Zeke did not have enough rounds to give it a good chance of inflicting fatal damage on a Navy fighter, while the US planes carried ample ammunition.
The bottom line is that a late-war Zeke pilot was not apt to have a long and merry existence, but neither was it suicidal for him to engage US Navy fighters.