CETC 1172 70C – Beginning PC Repair
21 July 2013
Evolution of Airpower
The evolution of airpower is a very broad subject that you could spend a lifetime researching and writing about (definitely not my objective). It is not my intent to get into the weeds on this subject but rather, give a “30,000 foot view” as one of my Colonels was famous for asking for on almost any subject that he needed to be briefed on. With that being said, the outline I intend to follow is:
I. The Wright Brothers
II. World War I
III. Between the Wars
IV. World War II
V. The Cold War
The Wright Brothers

It has been almost 110 years since the Wright Brothers made their first powered flight in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. I believe it is highly …show more content…

For the War Department, this was the straw that broke the camel’s back and in October 1925 they began proceedings to court martial Mitchell, who was convicted but chose to resign his commission (Pisano). From the perspective of some military historians, Mitchell was viewed not so much as a theorist, but as a prophet, promoter and martyr (Pisano). One glaring example of this comes from Burke Davis, in his book, The Billy Mitchell Affair (New York: Random House, 1967) were he goes into some detail about Mitchell’s report of his visit to Hawaii in 1924 in which he predicts a future war with Japan that opened with a carrier-based air attack on Pearl Harbor. world war ii
In looking at World War II, it is very easy to get deep into the weeds if you are not careful when discussing the evolution of airpower. In the opening salvo, Adolph Hitler and Germany introduced the world to the concept and tactic of the Blitzkrieg or “Lightning War” when he invaded Poland in September 1939. This was a simple tactic that obeyed all of the principles of war while employing the following: armor concentrations, massive precise air support, paratroopers, radio, flexibility, initiative and surprise, simplicity, air superiority, and logistics (2worldwar2). By taking advantage of the advances in technology and the complacency of its opponents, primarily the French who were