Boy do I wish y’all would put the date first. Every time I read one of these headlines I have a heart attack. :)
I hope I didn’t upset your Sunday morning too badly. But now that I have your attention . . .
Nazi Air Siege Called ‘Main Bout’; Result Is in Doubt, Seversky Holds – 6-7
This essay is a great example of the “Douhetist” school of aviation warfare doctrine, to which henkster (I think it was) referred some time ago. That is, the idea that the “big bomber,” which “will always get through,” is by itself sufficient to destroy the enemy’s ability to resist. From the final paragraph: “It will take time for people to recognize the fact that air power makes possible the defeat of an enemy without occupation. [Emphasis added by Homer.] In 1945 General Eisenhower will threaten to resign from his position of Supreme Allied Commander because the strategic bombing commanders didn’t want to stop bombing the German homeland in order provide tactical support for the Normandy invasion. I couldn’t understand how these otherwise intelligent men could be so thick headed on this one issue, but now I understand they were simply Douhetists. They thought the invasion was a needless waste of troops since, with a little more time, the Allied strategic bombers would force Germany to her knees.