That ultimate fulfillment of their prophecies and predictions can be summarized in their vision of airpower use. To win the war, one must first; conquer the air; use airpower as offensive weapon; gain air superiority to provide support to the ground forces; fight in the air, and deny enemy to fly; and destroy enemy support in order to break their capability and will to fight. From all those interwar airpower theorists and prophets, few of them distinguished from…
Take up your arms men and follow me. Our freedom is at stake, we have declared our independence and now must fight for our very lives. Treason against the crown is a hanging offense. Either we die on the gallows or die for our rights. And so our journey begins, the year is 1776. America’s forefathers have come together to discuss and act upon the injustice England has imposed upon the colonies. Blood has already been shed at Lexington, Bunker Hill, Fort Ticonderoga and Boston. George Washington…
group of allied forces had been surrounded. The reason for this halt being that Göring had promised Hitler that he could “bomb the enemy into submission”. Göring ultimately failed on his objective to destroy these allied forces for two reasons, one being that “bad weather frequently grounded the planes, [also] at this stage [the planes] did not fly at night”. There was, however, a more important reason, which was “the Luftwaffe met their first strong opposition by an air force that was to…
the United States through the use of an aerial bombing. Within the four raids that the allies carried out, 3,900 tons of highly explosive bombs and incendiaries were dropped on the city by heavy bombers of the United States Army Air Forces and the British Royal Air Force. Dresden, Germany was the country’s seventh-largest city and the largest of the remaining un-bombed built areas. Since the bombing, there has been much debate over whether the bombing was a war crime. A war crime is defined as…
“Molly: An American Girl on the Homefront,” taught me that during the 1940s was a time when every ounce of any kind of resource was preserved for the armed forces, families with soldiers away being afraid to open the door every time there was a ring, and when people lost their husbands, brothers, or sons, the community rallied together to try and ease the pain even with something as small as a casserole. A…
Air superiority during war is a make or break capability. To own the air not only with the use of a strong Air Force, but to rule it with a defensive posture. The anti-air capabilities of England during World War II set an example for what air defense can do and how effective it can be. The Battle of Britain was an air war that was conducted mostly over the skies of Britain and above the English Channel. The German Air Force, also known as the Luftwaffe, was conducting deep air raids into…
execution highlighted significant deficiencies in command and control and integration of Allied forces. Senior commanders, primarily General Eisenhower and British General Alexander, failed to adequately provide their staffs and subordinate commanders with clear intent, nor did they fully exploit the combined ground, air, and naval capabilities available to them. This essay identifies the shortcomings in Allied planning and execution in relation to mission command and the integration of joint…
The Canadian pilots had shown great performance during the battle of Britain. It was marked as Adolf Hitler’s first defeat and was the first major battle of the war. The Canadian pilots showed patriotism and loyalty throughout the battle. When the British army needed support the Canadian Pilots were there supplying them with whatever they needed. The Canadian pilots stayed with Britain through the whole battle. Canadian Pilots saved the day in the Battle of Britain because the Canadian pilots…
This morning, an airman on Lackland Air Force Base (AFB) just outside San Antonio, Texas shot and killed his squadron commander, then killed himself. At this time, it is unclear on the reasons for the incident. But it once again brings up the question, should military personal be allowed to be armed at all times to protect themselves? The active shooter incident on Lackland marks the 10th fatal shooting on a U.S. military installation in the U.S. since 2001. Of the 10, 3 have been confirmed…
The successful execution of Operation Husky following allied victory in North Africa occurred despite failures in mission command and joint interoperability. This evaluation measures key command and control actions and consequences of Operation Husky against the three major components of mission command including understanding, intent and mutual trust as established in current military doctrine and guidance. A review of pertinent case studies indicates major flaws in allied mutual trust and…