History of U.S. Aerial Warfare: From WWI to Modern Combat

Introduction to U.S. Military Airpower

Since time immemorial, warring sides in battles have sought ways of gaining strategic advantages over their enemies. Those who manage to secure that one crucial advantage during war increase their probability of winning. For a long time, militaries from across the world have sought to take to the air — advancing their ability not only to launch attacks at enemy lines but also to defend their positions. Prior to the First World War, flight was largely focused on the collection of field information, including the sighting of enemies and the guiding of troops. This was during the hot-air balloon era, when such aerial devices could be used to gain a bird's-eye view of the battlefield.

It is important to note that although the United States — the only remaining world superpower — boasts a fully fledged Air Force and a fleet of some of the most advanced aerial military devices in existence, the country's military airpower was weak before World War I, as was the case with most other nations. The development and further advancement of U.S. military airpower has been a long but remarkable journey.

The fact that the country has participated in two world wars and several other military conflicts has provided it with opportunities not only to test but also to demonstrate its superior airpower. Thanks to such encounters, the U.S. has also sharpened its fighter tactics in air combat. The country's superior airpower has been instrumental in both the Iraq War and the war in Afghanistan. In view of these developments, the relevance of reviewing the history and impact of aviation in wartime cannot be overstated.

Aerial Warfare and Military Aviation: An Overview

Aerial warfare is as deadly as it is strategic. The strategic benefits of aircraft utilization in warfare cannot be matched in a machine-oriented civilization. This is particularly true given that airpower eliminates the need for military personnel to maneuver cumbersome terrain and engage the enemy solely on the ground. Aircraft are also difficult to counter.

Military aviation, in basic terms, refers to the utilization of aircraft in the conduct of warfare. In that regard, military aircraft, in the words of Abeyratne (2012, p. 3), could be "defined as aircraft that are designed or modified for highly specialized use by the armed forces." It is useful to highlight the various kinds of military aircraft that have been used in wartime scenarios. These include reconnaissance, transport, fighter, and bomber aircraft.

Reconnaissance Aircraft: This kind of aircraft comes in handy for conducting aerial surveys of enemy positions or for gathering military intelligence. Although reconnaissance has in the past been carried out by manned aircraft, it is increasingly standard for the same to be conducted using unmanned aircraft designed not only to capture imagery of target areas but also to intercept signals.

Transport Aircraft: Transport aircraft assist in the movement of troops and military hardware.

Fighter Aircraft: These are manufactured for air-to-air combat. In addition to speed, they are designed for maximum maneuverability and agility. They are also smaller in comparison to other kinds of military aircraft that largely focus on ground targets (Abeyratne, 2012). It is important to note that although fighter aircraft also have ground-attack capabilities, these come as a secondary function.

Bomber Aircraft: These, as the name suggests, are of great strategic importance during wartime. Although they have historically been designed to fire torpedoes or drop bombs on ground targets, more recent bomber aircraft have the capability of firing cruise missiles (Messenger, 2013).

Utilization of Aircraft in War: World War I Through Vietnam

Prior to World War I, aircraft had not been used extensively in war. The only airborne machinery actively used — mainly for surveillance purposes — before World War I were tethered balloons (Dugdale-Pointon, 2007). These were mainly used to direct both mortar and artillery fire to relevant targets in what is referred to as artillery spotting.

World War I could be regarded as the United States' first aerial warfare engagement. America was drawn into the war by Germany's decision to consistently sink American civilian ships — in direct violation of the Sussex Pledge. There was also the infamous telegram that Germany sent to Mexico promising to help recover territory the latter had relinquished to the U.S. (Conlin, 2013). These events facilitated the U.S. declaration of war on Germany.

At the onset of World War I, airplanes were largely used for observation purposes. According to Dugdale-Pointon (2007), Germany was actively making use of rigid airships commonly referred to as Zeppelins. Countries like France were, at the outset, largely relying on aircraft for reconnaissance purposes rather than active combat. However, by the time the U.S. was drawn into the war in 1917, Great Britain and France were utilizing combat aircraft, albeit sparingly. It was not until 1918 that the Air Service was established, resulting in the creation of the very first United States aerial warfare force (Air Force Historical Research Agency [AFHRA], 2008).

In the words of AFHRA (2008), "despite a combat record of only nine months (February to November 1918), the Air Service made a respectable showing during World War I." By November 1918, the total number of U.S. aircraft allotted to squadrons stood at 740 — representing approximately "10% of the total aircraft strength of Allied nations" (AFHRA, 2008). This was, by any measure, immense improvement, and it firmly set the Air Service on the path to becoming a strategic and tactical war unit.

During those first nine months, from February 1918, the Air Service executed more than 100 bombings. As AFHRA (2008) points out, "in all, the Air Service downed 756 enemy aircraft and 76 enemy balloons, while losing 289 airplanes and 48 balloons."

Despite the strong performance during the late period of the First World War, America's aerial power truly came of age during the Second World War. It is important to note that aircraft technology advanced rapidly between the two wars. In 1918, available aircraft were largely inefficient — most were air-cooled and had wooden frames (Lorell, 2003).

By the time the Second World War began, aircraft altitudes and speeds had been doubled or tripled. This significantly increased both the payload and the range of military aircraft. As Lorell (2003) points out, many theorists and military strategists — both within and outside the U.S. — believed that future wars would be won by those with the ability to effect widespread destruction of enemy installations from the air. In 1932, Stanley Baldwin, the British Prime Minister at the time, cautioned that "it was time for the man in the street to realize there is no power on earth that can protect him from bombing" of an aerial nature (Head and Tilford, 1996, p. 310).

During the Second World War, the U.S. military aviation service in place was the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF). By 1942, the USAAF had four-engine, high-altitude bombers as part of its inventory (Murphy and McNiece, 2009). These aircraft were equipped with advanced defensive armament and could be deployed in large groups to conduct daytime air attacks on prime targets. Germany's war economy was badly damaged as a result. At this time, some strategists were convinced that heavy bombers did not require escort fighters due to their large tactical formations — an assertion that was widely disputed (Murphy and McNiece, 2009).

During World War II, Germany's weakening was, to a large extent, the direct consequence of consistent aerial bombardment by the Allies. As a result, the Luftwaffe was sufficiently weakened, and the integrity of Germany's skies — and hence its ground targets — could no longer be guaranteed. Although this was not sufficient on its own to win the war for the Allies, it was instrumental in weakening Germany and its partners.

Aerial warfare was taken to an entirely new level of destructive potential following the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The bombings resulted in mass deaths and destruction on a scale that had not been witnessed before, and ultimately informed Japan's surrender. The aircraft models mainly used by the U.S. during the Second World War are categorized below by type.

Bomber Aircraft: The primary bombers used during this war included the Boeing B-29 Superfortress, the Boeing XB-15, the Brewster XA-32, and the CAC Wirraway (Lorell, 2003). The Boeing B-29 Superfortress was the aircraft responsible for dropping the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Transport Aircraft: The United States made use of such models as the Boeing C-108 Flying Fortress, the Lockheed Model 10 Electra, the Waco CG-3, and the Douglas C-54 Skymaster for transportation and logistical purposes (Lorell, 2003).

Reconnaissance Aircraft: By 1941, the United States had begun to appreciate the need for dedicated reconnaissance aircraft. However, most aircraft used for aerial situational awareness at first were modifications of existing models, as was the case with the Lockheed A-12 Super Electra.

Fighter Aircraft: At the beginning of the Second World War, most of the fighter aircraft available to the United States were inferior to those of opposing forces (Dugdale-Pointon, 2007). As the war progressed, however, the U.S. aviation industry developed models that proved effective as the military sought to gain air superiority. These included the Grumman F6F Hellcat, the Northrop P-61 Black Widow, the North American P-51 Mustang, and the Bell P-39 Airacobra (Lorell, 2003).

There was massive utilization of fighter jets during the Korean War. Some of the combat jets extensively used included the F4U Corsair and the P-51 Mustang. While these two aircraft were propeller-powered, the skies were also dominated by turbojets such as the F9F Panther and the F-80.

The Korean War marked the very first time the United States employed jet aircraft in battle, effectively testing the newly self-reliant U.S. Air Force's combat capabilities (Murphy and McNiece, 2009). Other dominant U.S. jets included the F-86 Sabre and the MiG-15 — the latter being Soviet-built (Lorell, 2003). This war also saw the retirement of Second World War-era aircraft such as the B-29 Superfortress and the F-51D Mustang. Although battle-worn, the B-29s remained relevant for attacking military installations and other critical targets in North Korea (Lorell, 2003). The greatest aerial performances, however, came from aircraft such as the F-86 Sabre.

In addition to jet fighters, USAF units also made specialized use of the A-26A Invader and the A-1 Skyraider, both of which were largely counterinsurgency aircraft (Murphy and McNiece, 2009). Total casualties suffered by the USAF during this war numbered 1,841, while 1,466 aircraft were lost in action (Murphy and McNiece, 2009).

The aircraft used during the Korean War can also be categorized by type:

Reconnaissance Aircraft: Aircraft used for reconnaissance during the Korean War included the Convair RB-36D Peacemaker, the North American RB-45 Tornado, the Boeing RB-50A Superfortress, the Boeing RB/SB-17G Flying Fortress, and the RF-86 Sabre (Lorell, 2003). Convair RB-36D Peacemakers were largely utilized in high-altitude reconnaissance missions toward the end of the war. In some cases, reconnaissance aircraft such as the North American RB-45 Tornado were themselves valuable targets and had to be escorted by fighter jets. Their contribution to aerial photography and bomb damage assessment was indispensable.

Transport Aircraft: Transportation aircraft employed during the Korean War included the Douglas C-124 Globemaster II, the Curtiss C-46 Commando, and the Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcar (Lorell, 2003). These aircraft types proved critical in the airlifting of military personnel and supplies.

Fighter Aircraft: Fighter aircraft used during the Korean War included the North American F-86A/E/F Sabre, the Republic F-84E Thunderjet, the North American F-82F/G Twin Mustang, and the Lockheed F-94B Starfire (Lorell, 2003). In addition to air-to-air combat, fighter aircraft conducted ground attacks and served as escorts for other aircraft.

Bomber Aircraft: Bombers employed during the Korean War included the Douglas B-26 Invader and the Boeing B-29 Fortress (Lorell, 2003). These aircraft were extensively used to damage enemy infrastructure such as bridges, dams, and railroads — with the aim of disrupting enemy supplies and causing logistical confusion.

While the Korean War became synonymous with the significant introduction of fighter jets, the Vietnam War saw the massive utilization of helicopters by the United States. Some of the helicopters heavily used during this conflict were the UH-1 Huey, the CH-47 Chinook, the CH-54 Tarhe, and the AH-1 Cobra (Gross, 2002). It was the UH-1 Huey, however, that was most extensively used — eventually becoming the iconic symbol of the Vietnam War (Gross, 2002).

The CH-47 Chinook and CH-54 Tarhe were extremely important for logistics, as they could carry and lift heavy loads including artillery pieces and military vehicles. Helicopters overall were critical for the distribution of troops and the evacuation of wounded personnel throughout the conflict. Strategically, bombings were undertaken by such aircraft as the AC-47 gunship, the Douglas A-1 Skyraider, and the B-26 Invader (Gross, 2002).

Occasionally, B-52 Stratofortresses were used to pacify enemy positions by unloading massive payloads of explosives onto unsuspecting concentrations of enemy forces. According to Gross (2002), most strike missions in North Vietnam were flown using USAF F-105 Thunderchiefs — particularly during the so-called Operation Rolling Thunder.