Transcript Bombers: disrupt enemy production (s), reduce civilian morale

The
Air War
The Air War
•
Level of warfare
– Tactical = local
– Strategic = whole front/whole war
•
Role of an air force
– Fighters: intercept enemy attacks
(t), protect own bombers (t)
– Bombers: disrupt enemy
production (s), reduce civilian
morale (s), disrupt enemy supply
& communications (t & s), break
up enemy defences & attacks (t).
The Air War
• Start of war
– Germany: modern planes,
tested in Spain
– France, GB, USSR:
rearming, many old designs,
new planes starting to reach
frontline units.
• Bomber forces
– Germany: support blitzkrieg
– Allies: support ground
attacks AND (others to
carry out) strategic bombing
Battle of Britain
•
Why – scare British into surrender.
•
Operation Sealion – German plan to
invade Britain. Kriegsmarine &
Royal Navy both experienced heavy
losses in Scandinavian Campaign.
German success depended on control
of the air.
•
Goering promised Hitler he could
win control of the air. Initially, the
Luftwaffe had a two stage plan.
1. Destroy coastal radar & disrupt
Channel convoys.
2. Gain command of the air through
attacks on airfields & by shooting
down RAF planes.
Battle of Britain
•
•
•
Stage 1 - had limited success.
Stage 2 - became a war of attrition.
- Germans had more planes
Stage 3 - unplanned.
- German plane bombed London by accident, RAF bombed Berlin
- Hitler ordered retaliation: the Blitz, giving RAF chance to regroup
- eventually turned to Russia
Significance of the outcome of
the Battle of Britain (1)
• End of Operation Sealion
– the debate: was it realistic?
• Britain’s survival
– Churchill’s survival
– galvanised opposition
• British morale
• International impact
– the USA & Roosevelt
Significance of the outcome of
the Battle of Britain (2)
• Richard Overy’s argument
– revisionist, but…
– a calamity avoided
• Strategic significance
– two-front war
– ‘unsinkable aircraft carrier’
– promoting resistance
– D Day & after
Russia
• Huge initial German successes in 1941/2 – against obsolete planes
• New Russian designs proved more of a challenge
• However, by late 1942/early 1943…
- RAF/USAAF bombing of Germany leads to withdrawal of
Luftflotte (air fleet/air wing) for homeland defence
- Russian numbers slowly gained local then front-wide superiority
Bombing Germany
• 1939 – 41: limited, mostly night attacks on Germany & occupied
Europe, superficial damage.
• Failure to knock Britain out of war creates ‘an unsinkable aircraft
carrier’ – a base for attacking Nazi-occupied Europe.
• Bomber Command slowly builds up its heavy (4-engine) bombers
(Lancasters, Wellingtons, etc) – concentrates on massed night attacks.
Bombing Germany
• USAAF begins to be based in Britain from mid-1942. Concentrates on
daylight raids in big numbers (mostly 4-engined B17s, B24s).
• Luftwaffe now concentrates on fighters. Germany on the defensive.
• German designs which began the war as modern & superior have now
been surpassed (eg. Me109 fighter, He111 & Ju88 bombers). Most new
designs do not live up to expectations (exceptions: Fw190 fighter & Me
262 jet fighter).
Bombing Germany
• Allied bombing – esp. ‘1000 bomber’ raids, fire-bombing
seemingly destroy German cities. However, German production
rises in 1943, peaks in 1944.
• Why? Germany doesn’t go to total war until 1943. Allied nations
had done so from the start or almost so.
Bombing Germany
• However - infrastructure is heavily damaged (by late 1944), oil
supplies are dramatically reduced (mid/late 1944), civilian morale
begins to crumble (late 1944).
• Allied control of the air is crucial. Why?
–
–
–
–
Allows unhindered movement of supplies
No disruption of home front
Germans must react
Destruction of Wehrmacht