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war and social upheaval: World War II national air forces
World War II National Air Forces: U.S. Army Air Forces
Figure 1.--The German Luftwaff threatened Europe with a force of some 1,000 planes in the years leading up to World War II. It was designed as aactical force because the Germans did not have the industril capacity to build a strategic force. The United States did and would build nearly 300,000 aircraft of all time. Unfortunately for the Axis, they not only had to face American aircraft, but British and Soviet aircraft. Here two American kids pose in front of a C-46 Commando transport plane. (The C-47 had a longer exhaust pipe coming out of the engine. The exhaust pipe on the engines is enough to identify the C-46 Commando.) Families wait in line to board the craft and see how their boy were going to war. In the distance you can glimpse a Waco CG4-A Glider of D-Day fame.
More than any other country the United States decided to fight the War with a massive air force. President Roosevelt is known for his affinity with ships and the Navy. Less well known is hit commitment toward building a massive air force. About 25 percent of American war spending was devoted to the air war. Not only was this a greater share than Germany devoted to the Luftwaffe, the industrial capacity of America was much greater than that of Germany. The British focused on bombers. The Americans produced a wide range of aircraft for its various commands as well as for its allies. It was the most powerful air force of the 20th century. It took some time for the Allies to perfect tactics and production priorities, but by 1944 the Allies unleased a torrent of destruction, first on Germany and then on Japan that was in terms of destruction unprecedented in modern warfare.
The first heavier than air flight was conducted by the Wright brothers in at Kitty Hawk, North Carolinaa (1903). The Wrights were Ohio bicycle mechanics without formal engineering training. The Wrights after their success, dismatled their flyer and kept their design a scret. This did preent Europeans from copying their desisn. It also impaired their efforts to sell their flyers. Europeans who were working on aviation were shocked that two American bicycle mechanics had achieved the first flight. The Wrights managed to figure out how to conttrol a plane in flight. This put them several years ahead of other designers. The American military gave little attention to aviation. Europeans were involved in an arms race. Thus the Wrights turned to Europe to sell their planes. Military spending in Europe meant that after the Wrights, most early aviation advances occurred in Europe. Thus when American entered World War I the U.S. Army and U.S. Navy air components were hopelessly outdated (1917). American pilots had to use British and French aircraft. American aces are well known, including Eddie Rickenbacker, Raoul Lufbery, Quentin Roosevelt, Frank Luke, Joe Werner, Carl Spaatz, Everett Cook, Billy Mitchell and others. The United States Air Service deployed 45 fighter, bomber and observation squadrons. They participated in seven campaigns and shot down 781 enemy planes and 73 balloons. They dropped 140 tons of bombs in 150 bombing runs. They lost 289 planes and 48 balloons and 237 men. The War ended before America could begin to mass produce aircraft. They dropped 140 tons of bombs in 150 bombing runs. They lost 289 planes and 48 balloons and 237 men. The United States Navy also had one ace.
World War I ended before planned stratehgivc bombing campaigns could begin. Military strategists in the inter-War period debated the use of air power. More than any other country the United States decided to fight the next war with a massive air force. Funding was limited in the 1920s and even early-1930s when Hitler began to devote massive fund to the new Luftwaffe. President Roosevelt is known for his affinity with ships and the Navy. Less well known is his commitment toward building a massive air force, despite a bad experience with the Army Air Corps early in his administration. About 25 percent of American war spending was devoted to the air war. The British devoted an even higher percentage. Hitler was able to cow the Allies and gain stunning victories with a reltively small air force. Even by the time of the Battle of Britain, however, the British were already out producing the Germans in aircraft (July 1940) and American production was ramping up. American and Briish air commanders optimistically believed that the war could be won by air power alone. This would prove wrong, but they would make a major contribution to the War, both by strategic bombing and by by building a tactical, close ground suport capabiliy as well. Unlike the Germans, the Allies thanks to American industrial might had the capability of doing both. Ironically this was not the Army Air Corps' (AAC) intention. The AAC was dominated by Gen. Hap Aronold and the other Bomber Boys. They developed the B-17 heavy bomber during the mid-1930s and they were convinced that squadeon of B-17s could fight their way into the Reich during the day and destroy targets with pin-point accuracy. The rare individual who questioned the bomber theis like Claire Chennault had his career ruined. The British were skeptical for good reason. They pursued their bombing attacks at night. The American Bomber Boys would get their chace to test out their theroies after President Roosevelt and Prime-Miister Churchill announced the around the clock bombing of Germany at the Casablanca Conference (January 1943). It soon became onbvious that fighter escorts were needed. So much emphasis had been placed on bombing that the AAC gave little attention to tactical close air support. American enteresd the war with no tactical air dictrine . This would be developed iun the field with very limited support from the Bomber Boys who dominated the AAC, but considerable support from Gen. Eisenhower and Brdley. The key figure would be Gen. Pete Quesada in the 9th Air Force who litterally wrote the book on tactical air doctrine in the 4 moths bedore D-Day. America also had the capability of buildiung a massive trnsport capability. The Axis powers had primarily tactical air forces. The Germans unlike their adversaries had developed close air support even before launching thewar. It was a critical aspect of their great victories. Both Germany and Japan began the bombing of enemy cities. It proved an uncredible mistake because they did not have the industrial capacity to build a strategic air force. The British and Amnerican did and by the end of the war, German and Japanese cities would be vast piles of rubble and ash.
he aviation industry in the United States was a relatively small part of American industrial production before World War II. One source ranks it at only 41st in a list of major industies. The leading industry being the automobile industry. Even so, the American aviation industry was the largest in the world, in part because of demand from the growing demand for passanger aircraft. Europeans had little need for domestic aviation. America with substantial distances between cities did. President Roosevelt's decession to arm America as Europe moved toward war helped to further expand the industry. President Roosevelt gave a priority to air power in American defense planning. One of the results of that program was the Boeing B-17 which was designed to protect America from invasion. It proved ineffective against enemy fleets, but was along with the B-24 the mainstay of the American strategic air campaign against Germany. The British and French reacted slowly to German rearmament. This changed dramatically as Hitler began using the powerful Luftwaffe, first in Spain and then to threten the Czechs and their British and French allies. The British and French unable to restore the inballance in air fleets rapidly through domestic production, began to place orders for military aircraft in the United States (1938). This provided an inportant pre-War stimulus to the American aviation industry. The United States produced 6,000 air planes in 1939. Germany also developed a major aircraft industry as part of its rearmament program. The difference between the two countries is that America had a substantial capacity to increse airplane production. Germany had only a limited capacity to expand production. One reason America was able to expand aircraft production was its vast automotive industry. After America entered te War, a part of the automotive industry was diverted to aircraft production. American aircraft production expanded to an extent never imagined by the Germans and Japanese and to levels that surprised many Americans. And the industry produced many new many advanced aircraft types during the War. As a result the aircraft the U.S. Air Forces were using at the end of the War were different than those at the beginning of the War. This was in sharp contrast to the Axis air forces. Curtis, Grumman, Lockheed, and North American Aviation focused on fighters. Boeing focused on bombers.
The Americans produced a wide range of aircraft for its various commands as well as for its allies. It was the most powerful air force of the 20th century. American defense spending was very limited during the inter-War era. This was especially the case of the Army. Thus when World war II began the United States did not even have an effective tank. There was some spending on the Navy and Air Force (at the time the Army air Corps). The basic thesis which emerged in the 1930s because of the casulties in France during World War I was that the United states wold fight any future war with technology rather than massive ground forces. The Navy and Air Force were emphasized in the belief that they could intercept enemy forces trying to cross the Atlantic or Pacific. Thus the Navy and Air Corps were given priority with the limited defense soending. The United States before the War began working on strategic bombers. Not many planes were built and delivered to the Air Corps, but research and development soending resulted in considerable progress that would prive vital when the War began. And once the War began massive resources wee made available. As a result, few of the aircraft in use at the beginning of the War were still in service at the end of the War. The United States introduce a large number of aircraft during World War II, including various types of bombers, fighters, reconnaissance, transport, and other types.
Tactics
The Army Air Corps worked on tactics before the War. Almost all the theoreticalmwork and training focused on strategic bombing. And with th arrival of the B-17, the AAC commanders were sure they had the plane that could win the coming war. And by the time the B-17 began arriving, there was no doubt that a war was coming in Europe. While great attention was given to bombing tatics, virtually no attention was given to close air support. This is especially surprising because the AAC was not an independent force, but organizationally a division of the the U.S. Army. One might have thought that close air support would have been a priority. It took some time for the Allies to perfect tactics and production priorities, but by 1944 the Allies unleased a torrent of destruction, first on Germany and then on Japan that was in terms of destruction unprecedented in modern warfare. Despite the Luftwaffe's demostrated success in Europe, beginning with the invasiin of Poland (1939), the AAC did not develp a tactical lose air support doctrine. And evn more surprising, the Army did not emand that they do so. This obly developed in the informally field as the U.S. Army fought its way forrward in North Africa and up yj boot of ITaly. A fimal doctrinr was not devbeloped until the the Normany landings. AAC Gn. Pete yesasada had 4 months to work on it before D-Day and it was first tested and refined after the landings in the Normandy landings.
Commands
The U.S. Army Air Corps would eventually span the world with its variuous commands. Only America had the capability of creating such a force structure. It the end they would pulverise the European and Asian Axis. The most iconic was the 8th Air Force which began forming in Englans after Pearl Harbor and whose bombers would eventually level the cities of the Reich and their war making potential. But this was only one of the AAC various commands.
1st Air Force
The 1st Air Force was based at Mitchell Field. It was responsible for the air defense of the Eastern United States abd Air Force training.
2nd Air Force
The 2nd Air Force was based at McChord Field, Washington; Ft. George Wright, Washington; Colorado Springs, Colorado. It was responsible for the air defense of the northwestern Unitede States and Air Force Training.
3rd Air Force
The 3rd Air Force was based at MacDill Field, Florida; Tampa, Florida. It was responsible for the air defense of the southeastern United States and Air Force Training.
4th Air Force
The 4th Air Force was based at Hamilton Field, California; San Francisco, California. It was responsible for the air defense of the southwestern United States and Air Force Training.
5th Air Force
The 5th Air Force operated in Australia, New Guinea, Schouten Islands, Philippines, and Okinawa This was MacArthur's Air Force. It saw combat primarily in the southwest Pacific. It was the first American Army Air Force to play an important role in the War. It supported the advance of Allied ground fotces in New Guinea and the building of rings around Rabaul to isolate this major Japanese base. Its primary units were: 22nd Bomb Group, 43rd Bomb Group. and the 475th Fighter Group.
6th Air Force
The 6th Air Force was based at Airbrook Field, Panama Canal Zone. It was responsible for the Defense of the Panama Canal and anti-submarine operations.
7th Air Force
The 7th Air Force was first based in Hawaii and then expanded to Saipan and Okinawa. It was responsible for the air defense of Hawaii and failed resulting in the Pearl Harbor disaster. It was subsequently involved in combat in both the central and western Pacific. It primary force was the 78th Fighter Group.
8th Air Force
The Eighth Air Force or Mighty Eigth was the most powerful of all the Army Air Force's World War II commands. The United States within weeks of Pearl Harbor began to establish the Eighth Air Force in bases the British provided mostly in eastern Britain. The Mighty Eighth joined RAF's Bomber Command in the strategic bombing campaign against NAZI Germany (1942). The British bombed at night, the Americans during the day in an 'around the clock effort' (1943). At first the Americans believed that heavily armed bombers flying in tight formation could penetrate German air defenes. It was where most of the B-17s and B-24s that came off American assembly lines like Willow Run were deployed. German industrial production sinply could not match that of the American Arsenal of Democracy--the greatest industrial effort in human histiory. The build up continued throughout 1942. The first bombing missiions were in occupied France. Missions into the heavily defended Reich at first resulted in unsustainable losses. After the invasion of Italy (September 1943), the 15th Air Force joined the struggle from the south. The answer to heavy bomber losses was fighter escorts, especially the P-51 Mustang which began to arrive (December 1943). At first commanded by Ira Eaker and than Jimmy Doolittle, the Eighth Air Force bombers began to destroy the war making capability of NAZI Germany. Doolittle turned the increasing number of escorts yo low level attacks on German targets. The Lufwaffe fighters that came up to protet German cities were swept from the skies by the Ameriacn fighter escorts. Destroying the Luftwaffe meant that the Allies would have air superority with the D-Day cross Channel Invasion. Eighth Air Force bombing was diverted to support the D-Day effort (Spring 1944). Substanbtial German industrial war production continued into late-1944, but it was increasingly defensive eaponry. After the D-Day breakouut (August 1944), the Eighth Air Force anbd RAF Bomber Command resumed the destruction of German war industries. German war production plummeted. By the end of the War German industrial cities were turned into massive piles of smoldering rubble rubble. The Eighth Air Force units included:
34th Bomb Group
44th Bomb Group
91st Bomb Group
92nd Bomb Group
93rd Bomb Group
94th Bomb Group
95th Bomb Group
96th Bomb Group
97th Bomb Group
98th Bomb Group
100th Bomb Group
303rd Bomb Group
305th Bomb Group
306th Bomb Group
351st Bomb Group
379th Bomb Group
381st Bomb Group
384th Bomb Group
385th Bomb Group
388th Bomb Group
390th Bomb Group
392nd Bomb Group
398th Bomb Group
401st Bomb Group
447th Bomb Group
448th Bomb Group
452nd Bomb Group
453rd Bomb Group
457th Bomb Group
463rd Bomb Group
467th Bomb Group
486th Bomb Group
487th Bomb Group
492nd Bomb Group
4th Fighter Group
361st Fighter Group
352nd Fighter Group
357th Fighter Group
367th Fighter Group
9th Air Force
The 9th Air Force had bases in Egypt, England, and France. It saw combat in North Africa and in Europe. It was moved to England in part because the 8th Air Force was just too large for fficent management. It was the tactical airforce in the European Theatre of Operations. The Bomber Boys, however, saw it primarily as providing needed escorts for the bombers. It would do this as well as evelop American close air suppot doctrine as well which only became a rality with the D-Dy landings (June 1944). Here the driving force was Gen. Pere Quesada. It consisted of:
365th Fighter Group
404th Fighter Group
406th Fighter Group
10th Air Force
The 10th Air Force operated in China, Burma, and India. It consisted of the:
22nd Bomb Group
308th Bomb Group
341st Bomb Group
347th Airdrome Squadron
11th Air Force
The 11th Air Force operated from Elmendorf Field, Alaska and Adak, Alaska. It saw combat aginst the Japanese in the Aleutians. It faced the most severe weather conditions of any of the americn Air Forces during the War.
12th Air Force
The 12th Air Force was based in England, Algeria, Tunisia, and Italy. It arrived in North Africa with the Totch invasion (Movember 1942). It saw combat operations in North Africa and the Mediterranean campaigns. It consisted of the 340th Bomb Group.
13th Air Force
The 13th Air Force operated in New Caledonia, Espiritu Santo, Mexico, Guadalcanal, Los Negros, New Guinea, Noemfoor, Morotai, the Philippines. It saw comat throughout the south and southwest Pacific. It consisted of the 390th Bombardment Squadron.
14th Air Force
The 14th Air Force was based in Kunming and Peishiyi, China. Ot was the eventual inheritor of the Flying Tigervlegacy. The 14th Air Force was to carry out the strategic bomvbing campaign against Japan using the new B-29 bombers. Initial results were disaapointing. A Japanese offensive over-running Chinese bases as well as success in the Pacific campaign changed this assignment. When the Navy cracked the Japanese defenive line in the central Pscific seizing Saipan, Tinian, and Guam, the assignment was transferred to the newly organized 20th Air Force. The bases could be much more easilly supplied than the 14th Air Force.
15th Air Force
The 15th Air Force was organized by famed airman Major General Jimmy Doolitle (November 1943) who would be susequently transfrred to England (January 1944) to lead the 8th Air Force. The units which would be formed into the 15th Air Force were first based in Libya and Tunisia after the defeat of the Afrika Korps. The 15th saw combat in the European Theater Operations,attacking the Reich's southern flank. It was the 8th Air Force that attracted most of the World War II coverage in the strategic boming campaign against Germany. It was the 15th that took on the dangerous task of demoloishing the Romanian Ploesti oil fields, the primary source of natural petroleum fueling the German war machine, Ploesti was the most heavily defended target in World War II. The 15th suffeed staggering losses. The 15th once acquiring bases in southern Italy (Septenver 1943) began hammering away at Polesti with greater regularity as well as industry in southern Germany. This further stressed the Luftwaffe. Thgey could no linger just prepare on waves of bombers coming from the west. The had to divert forces to intercepot bombers from the south. The flyers of the 15th suffered the same stress and privations as the men flying with the 8th Air Force from England. One authors writes, "Inside the bombers, waist gunnerstook fleeting shots at grey-green silhouettes flashing trough their formations. The single handheld Browings thumped out their authoratative basso at thirteen rounds per second. In extended combat, empty brass cartridges fell in pilesaround the gunners' booted feat. Teenage airmen reverted to their basic gunnery classes in Utah or Texas: A fighter's not a duck or pheasant. You're flying at 200 mph so aim behind him to hit him!'" [Tillman]
The 15th Air Force units included:
2nd Bomb Group
450th Bomb Group
454th Bomb Group
456th Bomb Group
461st Bomb Group
463rd Bomb Group
483rd Bomb Group
484th Bomb Group
332nd Fighter Group
20th Air Force
The 20th Air Force was based on Saipan, Guam, and Tinian. Its major assisnment was the strategic bombing of the Japanese home islands. The B-29 Superfortress could reach Japan from these islands. The initial results were disappointing. This changed with the reassignment of General Curtis LeMay from the 8th Air Force. The 20th Air Force could be easily supplied by transports sailing west from the United States. Its major units were:
39th Bomb Group
40th Bomb Group
Sources
Tillman, Barrett. Forgotten Fifteenth: The Daring Airmen Who Crippled Hitler's War Machine (2014), 336p.
