I really doubt that. If you turn on auto-mixture you'll see that it does a terrible job of finding the optimal setting. Also, there is no trim in Rise of Flight.

People used a similar explanation for Il-2, but it's not quite accurate. If you watch the Il-2 auto-pilot climb, you'll see that the controls are frequently cross-coordinated. In Il-2 the AI could always outclimb you because it had no overheat limits and, more importantly, it did not use the same flight model as the human player.

In Rise of Flight the AI does use the same flight model. The best way not to get left behind is to know the optimal climb speed for your aircraft. As it was pointed out above, pitching up even more will cause you to fall further behind.

Ha!

The AI in RoF do seem to be the direct antecedents of Il-2's 'Hysterical Hans and the Full Throttle Three'.

The problem is though, that if you lower the cruise and climb for the AI leader, the other AI catch up.

"But that's a good thing!" I hear you say... Nope, it results in some rather extreme formation flying techniques being displayed, usually with an option for anyone observing these techniques from the ground to take home their very own piece of airplane after it has fluttered to earth after the inevitable collisions are over.

If you've flown RoF then you'll know that the last place you want to be in the sky is anywhere near an AI aircraft, the AI stink, in every respect except for performing tight turns down to zero feet and slamming themselves into the ground before you can get a bead on them.

Edit: Oh, and hanging from their props like helicopters for those telling potshots at your fuel tank and gunning down entire squadrons of scouts from flexible gun positions, they can do that without breaking an artificial sweat.