THE AIRPLANE AND WORLD WAR I

The American aviators Wilbur Wright and Orville Wright made the world's first powered, controlled, heavier-than-air flights on December 17, 1903. By 1910, however, leadership in the new technology had passed to Europe, where publishers and other magnates supported aviation through the sponsorship of races and competitions, while governments purchased aircraft for the earliest military flying units and funded research and development.

Within a month of the outbreak of World War I in August 1914, military aviators had demonstrated their value as aerial scouts and observers. The need to prevent enemy fliers from observing activity behind the lines led to the development of the first fighter aircraft. The appearance in 1915 of the German Fokker E.II, which featured a machine gun synchronized to shoot through the arc of the spinning propeller, opened the era of air combat.

The fight for control of the airspace over the trenches fueled rapid technical development. Comparative advantage shifted back and forth across the lines as new aircraft were introduced. By 1918 the skies were contested by superb fighter aircraft such as the German Fokker D.VII, French Spad XIII, and British S.E.5 and Sopwith Camel, which operated at speeds of up to 200 km/h (125 mph), and altitudes of 6,100 m (20,000 ft).

It was in France that the word “ace” was first applied to a fighter pilot with five or more combat kills. The German ace Manfred von Richthofen, known as the “Red Baron,” ran up a total of 80 victories before being shot down and killed behind British lines on April 21, 1918. René Fonck, a French pilot with 75 victories, was the highest-ranking ace to survive the war. Other top fighter pilots of the war were Major Edward “Mick” Mannock (Britain, 73 victories); Major William “Billy” Bishop (Canada, 72 victories); Captain Ernst Udet (Germany, 62 victories); and Captain Eddie Rickenbacker (United States, 26 victories).

While public attention focused on the fighter pilots, observation and artillery spotting were the most critical tasks performed by aircraft during World War I. Air forces on both sides explored other missions, such as the use of ground attack airplanes to support infantry. Large flying boats conducted antisubmarine patrols and long-range ocean reconnaissance.

German airships—known as zeppelins after the name of the leading manufacturer—bombed cities in Belgium, Britain, and France during the years 1914 to 1917, but the slow hydrogen-filled ships proved easy for fighters to set aflame. After 1917 German fliers attacked London and other cities with twin-engine Gotha aircraft and giant four-engine bombers such as the Zeppelin-Staaken R.VI, with a wingspan of more than 42 m (138 ft) and a bomb load of 2,040 kg (4,500 lbs).