Aircraft of the World Wars
Matthew Wynia
Research Paper
Mrs. Weiking
17 December 2012
Aviation of the World Wars A spitfire streaked through the sky, its pilot looking for an enemy. Suddenly, a red tri-plane appeared out of nowhere, and shot a missile, taking out the plane’s wing. As the spitfire plummeted to the ground, the pilot wondered why he had tried to take on the Red Baron. Suddenly he collided with a biplane bomber, taking it with him to a fiery end… Wait a moment. Wasn’t the Red Baron long before spitfires? And were there any biplane bombers? Did they really have missiles back then? Are you sure this story is accurate? Any of these questions can be answered by looking into history. Studying the airplanes of the World Wars will reveal their function, effectiveness, and inform about the pilots who flew them.
The aircraft for World War I (WWI), and their purpose, greatly differed from those in World War II (WWII). Their value was defined by the author R. G. Grant, who said, “The principle role of aircraft in World War I was to support the armies in the trenches.” Basically, the army on the ground was viewed as the primary fighting force of the war, not airplanes. Neither the Allies nor the Axis powers could see how they could do any good. As always, the troop movements on the ground were considered the most important part of the army (Grant 68).
No one really thought that airplanes would work as weapons, either. Many saw them as more of an annoyance than anything else. During some experimental observation tests, someone said that the airplanes were unnecessarily frightening the cavalry’s horses. Some relatively small bombing tests had been made, but airplane’s uses at the start of the war were still limited to reconnaissance and scouting (“Aviation”).
A problem that came for many countries at the start of the war was gathering a sufficient number of airplanes to put to use. Germany was able to muster the most at 282, which was a lot for back in that time period.
Research Paper
Mrs. Weiking
17 December 2012
Aviation of the World Wars A spitfire streaked through the sky, its pilot looking for an enemy. Suddenly, a red tri-plane appeared out of nowhere, and shot a missile, taking out the plane’s wing. As the spitfire plummeted to the ground, the pilot wondered why he had tried to take on the Red Baron. Suddenly he collided with a biplane bomber, taking it with him to a fiery end… Wait a moment. Wasn’t the Red Baron long before spitfires? And were there any biplane bombers? Did they really have missiles back then? Are you sure this story is accurate? Any of these questions can be answered by looking into history. Studying the airplanes of the World Wars will reveal their function, effectiveness, and inform about the pilots who flew them.
The aircraft for World War I (WWI), and their purpose, greatly differed from those in World War II (WWII). Their value was defined by the author R. G. Grant, who said, “The principle role of aircraft in World War I was to support the armies in the trenches.” Basically, the army on the ground was viewed as the primary fighting force of the war, not airplanes. Neither the Allies nor the Axis powers could see how they could do any good. As always, the troop movements on the ground were considered the most important part of the army (Grant 68).
No one really thought that airplanes would work as weapons, either. Many saw them as more of an annoyance than anything else. During some experimental observation tests, someone said that the airplanes were unnecessarily frightening the cavalry’s horses. Some relatively small bombing tests had been made, but airplane’s uses at the start of the war were still limited to reconnaissance and scouting (“Aviation”).
A problem that came for many countries at the start of the war was gathering a sufficient number of airplanes to put to use. Germany was able to muster the most at 282, which was a lot for back in that time period.
Cited: "Bombers of World War I, The." Century of Flight. 2006. <http://www.century-of-flight.net/Aviation%20history/airplane%20at%20war/Bombers.htm>. "Bombing Raids of World War Two, The." Century of Flight Colon, Raul. "End of the German Air Offensive on the Western Front, The." Century of Flight. 25 Jan. 2006. <http://www.century-of-flight.net/Aviation%20history/airplane%20at%20war/germany_the_end.htm>. Colon, Raul Grant, R. G. Flight: The Complete History. New York: DK, 2010. 68-259. "Rehearsals for War." Century of Flight. 2006. <http://www.century-of-flight.net/Aviation%20history/WW2/preparing%20for%20war.htm>. "World War I Aerial Combat." Century of Flight