Overview

The Air Force was founded upon the precepts of strategic bombing. Hugh Trenchard, Giulio Douhet, and Billy Mitchell pioneered early airpower doctrine while the Air Corps Tactical School refined and developed it to eventually form the blueprint for American bombing in World War Two. After the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, nuclear strategic airpower stole the limelight from its conventional counterpart. The Air Force blossomed under the national strategy of Massive Retaliation because its long range heavy bombers were the preeminent delivery platform for nuclear weapons. Thus SACÂ's bomber pilots dominated the service to the point strategic airpower became synonymous with nuclear weapons while TAC operated in the shadows of Air Force respectability striving to maintain its legitimacy despite the ambiguous effects of strategic airpower in Korea. Technology and the impact of the Vietnam War started a shift in Air Force culture from bombers to fighters that has seen the pendulum swing to the other extreme where fighter pilots run the service at the expense of conventional strategic airpower. After Vietnam, the Air Force seemed preoccupied with the European theater and AirLand Battle doctrine that did not require conventional strategic airpower. This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work. This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

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