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Air Power
Assignment Two
Topic Two

Chris Rouse
21018203

25/09/2021
27B Hollywood Ave, Auckland
 Air Power Assignment Two

Technology advancements in aviation from the first manned flight in 1903 to the early
1920's, inspired the minds of airpower theorists such as General Guilio Douhet to create a
new age theory on war domination. Douhet's theory was that bomber aircraft dominated the
war alone by wreaking havoc on enemy capitals and civilians, ensuring peace. The theory
was built after expanding airpower during the later parts of world war one, with purpose-built
bombers. I will discuss how technology developed, not just aircraft but air defence systems
and how they played a role in Douhets theories. Douhets theories had value but were not
entirely accurate, shown by the outcomes in the Battle of Brittan, the Six-Day War and the
ending of the Second World War in the Pacific.

In 1910 Douhet wrote an essay where he quoted, "The skies are about to become a battlefield
as important as the land or the sea’. (Crane & Meilinger, 1998). Only a year later seen his
insights come to light with the development of bomber aircraft in the first world war. The
first act of an aircraft bombing was from a pilot dropping grenades out of the cockpit in 1911
to larger purpose build bombers such as the Voisen III. In 1915 Voisin's attacked German
poison gas factory’s unopposed in a strategic bombing raid. (Zalm, 2019). In the early 1920s,
Italian bomber aircraft development continued with the Caproni Ca.67 and equivalents. The
Caproni aircraft was designed for night time raids and had a payload of 12 x 100kg Lanciea
bombs with gunners for defence. It was apparent that bomber aircraft were more powerful in
terms of performance and top speeds than other aircraft in the 1920-1930 period, which
showed that research and development focused on bombers being the key to victory of war,
just like Douhet's theories suggested.

World War Two (WWII) was an essential catalyst to rapid airpower development from both
sides to gain military supremacy, which the Germans thought to be the key before an
invasion. The German airpower philosophy was built around the theory of Douhet as they
rained bombs on the English, presuming they could dominate the air space and have control
of Britain within four weeks. Correll (2008). The most captivating bombing of England by
the Luftwaffe was the aerial segment of 'The Blitz' campaign, which lasted from Sep 1940 to
May 1941. Over the nine months, the immense bombing that pursued created a death toll of
over 43,500 civilians with untold damage to the major cities, housing, and industrial
infrastructure. Altogether, 41,000 tons of bombs were dropped on England, but the Brits’ still
did not surrender. Instead, the English morale may have even improved, with historians
claiming the English were happier since the war than in peace, with the only way to defeat
them would be by extermination (Addison & Crang, 2020). The Brits’ will to survive was
shown by the technology they produced to counter German air strikes and the rapid rate of
development and manufacture while being constantly bombarded. One advancement was in
radar technology, not just on the ground but in an aircraft the first being that of a Bristol
Beaufighter. The airbourne radar technology allowed RAF interceptor aircraft the ability to
locate the enemy bombers during night raids and gain an advantage for the allied air defence. 

In order for the Luftwaffe to be more accurate during their night time bombing raids the
Germans re designed radio navigation aids specifically for precise bombing. These navigation
aids gave the Luftwaffe the upper hand when it came to strategic night time bombing due to
fewer bombs missing targets. Radio navigation technology is still in use today but the Brits at
the time figured out a way to combat this new age technology by an unfortunate slip of
intelligence by the Germans. The Brits employed medical electrocautery machines to send
out false radio frequencies to disrupt the signals sent by the navigation aids to the German
bombers. These false signals were able to help widen the aid signal resulting in decreased
bomber accuracy. (Royal Corps of Signals, 2020). The bombing raids throughout the German
Blitzkrieg had the underlining principle of Douhet's theories, but the bombers despite their
effectiveness failed to win the war in Europe for Germany, which was ultimately won by the
allies in combination of air, sea and ground base warfare ending with the fall of Berlin. Hitler
pulled the Luftwaffe out of the 'Blitz' to help against the Soviet Union and had scepticism
over the use of strategic bombing after the end of the 'Blitz' campaign. Hitler had used the
threat of bombardment on smaller nations in the 1930s, resulting in these countries
succumbing to German occupation. The threat of this nature was a sign that the legacy of
Douhet and his theories had an effect on these smaller nations. Unfortunately for Germany,
his theories did not hold against a more determined and formidable force: The United
Kingdom.   

Unlike the Battle of Britain, the end of the Pacific War was brought on by the dropping of
two single bombs on the Japanese cities of Ngasaki and Hiroshima in August 1945. The death
toll was immense, with widespread suffering for the Japanese due to radiation sickness for
years to come. Douhets theory of bombing a nation into submission was someway true in the
atomic bombing of Japan by American forces. Douhet wrote about how weapons would be
developed and how advancements in chemistry were the key to future destructive weapons.
(G.Douhet 2010). Douhet still did not understand at that time how far the advancements
would be in such a warhead that could cause mass destruction. In just two bombs dropped out
of the Boeing B-29 Superfortress, each employing different nuclear technologies, killed
between 129,000 and 226,000 Japanese, with the majority being civilians destroying the will
and morale of the people who previously did not intend to surrender. It was a means to an end
with over 25 million total casualties in the greater Pacific War (Frank, 2020), not the theory
behind Douhet's scenario, of the need for no trench warfare. The development not only of the
nuclear warheads but the aircraft that could carry them was impressive. Near the end of
WWII, the B-29 was introduced with advanced technology, including pressurisation for the
crew and an analogue computer firing system with one gunner controlling four turrets. The
B-29 had the payload and extended reach capabilities, along with the defence advantage of
high altitude flight, made it one of the most advanced radial powered aircraft of its time. The
advanced aircraft and nuclear warheads allowed America to showcase their supremacy and
ultimately end the pacific war by way of airpower.  

Nearly two decades later, Operation' Focus' in the Middle East took place, also known as the
six-day war in June 1967, was carried out with surprise by the Israeli Air Force (IAF) using
188 aircraft in three primary waves. The war was brought on by the increasing treaties and
agreements signed by the Arab countries surrounding Israel, leaving them vulnerable to
attack from all sides. Because of the advancements in warheads that the IAF received from
the French, they were able to incapacitate the runaways of the Egyptian air force with anti-
runaway warheads that made them difficult to fix quickly. The IAF was then able to easily
destroy 452 aircraft that were mainly grounded due to the destruction of the runways, giving
them air supremacy in a matter of days, leaving the Egyptian, Jordanian, and half the Syrian
Air Forces virtually ineffective. The IAF then focused on assisting the ground troops
unimpeded in the air domain showing how they could work together decisively to gain the
necessary power for submission. In six days, the Israeli defence force overran the Sinai
Peninsula, took the entire West Bank of the River Jordan, and captured a significant part of
the Golan Heights in southern Syria. For the first time in almost two millennia the Jewish
holy places in Jerusalem were under the control of Jews. (Bowen, 2017). Douhet's principles
on airpower were that strategic bombing should ensure victory; that was not the case with
Operation Focus. Even with airpower supremacy, land forces, including tanks and artillery,
clearly played an important role in Israeli's victory and not just aerial bombing to destroy the
people's will into surrender, as Douhet would suggest.

In conclusion, Douhet's work around the theory of airpower and how it could be used was
revolutionary for his time. His theories were used in the strategies of future conflicts
following his death in 1930, and this showcased how incredibly effective it was to use
bombers. But it was not the bomber alone that won a war but a complex utilisation of all
aspects of war, including all military divisons. Douhet would have been amazed with the
advancements in aircraft technology, arsenal and defences used to attempt to suppress the
untoward bombing of a nation into submission in the years following his thesis. But with the
rapid development of new age jet aircraft and unmanned bombers, time alone will tell if he is
eventually proven right.  

References:

 Crane, C. C., & Meilinger, P. S. (1998). The Paths of Heaven: The Evolution of

Airpower Theory. The Journal of Military History, 62(4), 933.

https://doi.org/10.2307/120212

 Zalm, B. Z. (2019, January 4). Voisin III. Aircraft Investigation.

http://www.aircraftinvestigation.info/airplanes/Voisin%20III%20type%20LA.html

 Correll, J. C. (2008, August 1). How the Luftwaffe Lost the Battle of Britan. Airforce

Mag. https://www.airforcemag.com/article/0808battle/

 Addison, P., & Crang, J. A. (2020). The Spirit of the Blitz: Home Intelligence and

British Morale, September 1940 - June 1941. Oxford University Press.

 Royal Corps of Signals. (2020). Roger So Far . . .: The first 100 years of the Royal

Corps of Signals. The History Press.

 Giulio Douhet, Joseph Patrick Harahan, & Richard H. Kohn. (2010). The Command of the Air. University
Alabama Press.

 Frank, R. B. (2020). Tower of Skulls: A History of the Asia-Pacific War: July 1937-

May 1942 (Illustrated ed.). W. W. Norton & Company.

 Bowen, B. J. (2017, June 5). 1967 war: Six days that changed the Middle East. BBC

News. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-39960461