Is there a safe way to kill Orbinauts (4-spike enemies) as Tails/Knuckles?

In Sonic 3 (and Sonic 3 & Knuckles), there is an enemy known as an Orbinaut that appears in the Launch Base Zone. It protects itself with 4 spike-balls that orbit it's body.

Unlike the Star Pointer, Orbinauts don't fire their spikes (ergo leaving them vulnerable), and it doesn't seem possible to melt/destroy them with a shield (both possible with the Star Pointer):

Playing as Sonic, it is possible (but relatively hard in regards to timing) to kill these enemies using the Insta-shield attack (tapping Jump again in mid-air). However, Tails and Knuckles' abilities are to Fly and Glide respectively, which don't seem to be effective at killing them.

Having recently embarked on a playthrough trying to kill as many Badniks per level as possible, I'm a little stumped on how to kill them safely, without either

• Using Invincibility boxes (not readily available)
• Going Super
  • Which Tails can't do in Sonic 3 anyway: only in Sonic 3 & Knuckles and obtaining the Super Emeralds can he go Super (and only on a second playthrough can he do this in Launch Base Zone)
• Taking a hit and relying on the invincibility frames to get through the spike balls and kill the badnik (losing my current shield or rings in the process).

Am I approaching them at the wrong angle? (i.e. Top-down or Spin Dash) Or is there another way to reliably take them out?