The Aeroplane in War

by Claude Grahame-White; Harry Harper

When two opposing armies both have large fleets of war aeroplanes, and these machines take the air in squadrons, prior to a battle, what will happen when they come in contact with each other?

The question is one which the greatest military experts are discussing. Obviously, there will be an aerial battle, each aeroplane corps seeking to cripple the other. Each Commander-in-Chief will in fact desire, above all else, to obtain supremacy of the air. If he can do so, it will have the effect of seriously handicapping his opponent.

Thus—probably waged with light guns firing explosive shells—the next great war will begin, not on earth, but several thousand feet in the air.

Claude Grahame-White.

Harry Harper.

London, 1912.

*CONTENTS*

PREFACE …………………………………………………..
FIRST SECTION REVIEW OF PROGRESS PRIOR TO THE FIRST MILITARY TESTS
OF AEROPLANES ……………………………………………..
I. Dawn of flight—Encouragement in Europe and America—England’s
lost opportunities—The pioneers. …………………………..
II. First practical flights—The Wright brothers; the Voisins;
Farman—The cross-Channel flight. …………………………..
III. Aeroplanes at Rheims, 1909—Wright, Voisin, Farman, Blériot,
Antoinette—The Gnome engine—First military orders. …………..
IV. The human factor—Growing skill of airmen—Feats of 1910, as
compared with those of 1909—Cross-country flying. ……………
SECOND SECTION FIRST EXPERIMENTS WITH AEROPLANES IN THE FRENCH
AUTUMN MANOEUVRES, 1910. ……………………………………
I. The historic Picardy tests—First official report upon movements
of troops, as gleaned by aeroplane. ………………………..
II. Second conclusive test—Detecting an army in retreat—France’s
determination to possess an air-fleet. ……………………..
THIRD SECTION THE GROWING AIR-FLEETS OF FOREIGN NATIONS ………..
I. Activity in France—Two hundred machines at the end of 1911; a
thousand promised by the year 1914. ………………………..
II. The great French tests of military aeroplanes—Striking results
obtained—Era of fast, "air-worthy," weight-carrying machines. …
III. Germany’s aerial policy—Secret energies in creating a fleet
of war aeroplanes—Rivalry with France. ……………………..
IV. Progress in Russia, America, and other countries-England’s
position in the autumn of 1911. ……………………………
FOURTH SECTION IMPORTANCE OF ORGANISATION IN THE USE OF WAR
AEROPLANES ………………………………………………..
I. French plans for the concerted use of squadrons of machines in
time of war. …………………………………………….
II. Value of air-stations—Selection of landing-grounds—Preparing
air-maps. ……………………………………………….
FIFTH SECTION ENGLAND’S POSITION IN REGARDS TO MILITARY FLYING ….
I. Lessons which were ignored—Work of the Parliamentary Aerial
Defence Committee. ……………………………………….
II. Policy of "moving cautiously"—Peril of lagging behind in
aerial armament. …………………………………………
III. The financial aspect—Money England is spending—The airship
policy—Insufficient provision for aeroplanes. ……………….
IV. Dangers of a policy of "drift"—Experience which money cannot
buy—Trained men, not so much as machines, the criterion of
strength. ……………………………………………….
V. England’s official awakening—The training of 100 airmen—The
forthcoming trials of military machines. ……………………
SIXTH SECTION WAR AEROPLANES AT THE PARIS AERONAUTICAL EXHIBITION,
DECEMBER, 1911 …………………………………………….
I. Latest-type military monoplanes—Two-seated, reconnoitring
machines—Single-seated, high-speed aircraft. ………………..
II. Latest developments in biplane construction—The
engine-in-front, weight-carrying machine. …………………..
III. Healthy position of the French industry—What England has
lacked—Danger of neglecting home builders. ………………….
SEVENTH SECTION WHAT EXISTING WAR AEROPLANES CAN ACTUALLY ACCOMPLISH
I. Plight of a Commander-in-Chief without an aeroplane corps—The
work of cavalry reconnaissance. ……………………………
II. Work of a squadron of air-scouts described—Tasks of the pilot
and observer—Combined reconnaissance by many machines—Effect of
aeroplanes upon tactics. ………………………………….
III. Other uses of the war
aeroplane—Surveying—Dispatch-carrying—Directing gun-fire—Transport
of staff officers. ……………………………………….
EIGHTH SECTION WIRELESS TELEGRAPHY AND PHOTOGRAPHY AS AIDS TO AERIAL
RECONNAISSANCE …………………………………………….
I. First tests and successes with wireless telegraphy—Difficulty
of equipping an aeroplane with transmitting plant. …………..
II. French triumphs with wireless telegraphy—Messages sent over a
distance of thirty-five miles. …………………………….
III. Practical uses of wireless upon aeroplanes—England’s lack of
effort. …………………………………………………
IV. Photography from a war aeroplane—The use of special automatic
cameras. ………………………………………………..
NINTH SECTION DEVELOPMENT OF ALL-WEATHER WAR AEROPLANES ………..
I. Flights in thirty-five-mile-an-hour winds—Arguments of
sceptics—What the great contests of 1911 proved. …………….
II. Value of high speed, when combating a wind—Constructional
difficulties of a hundred-mile-an-hour machine. ……………..
III. Variable-speed aeroplane—Plans for constructing aircraft of
this type—Advantages of such a machine. …………………….
IV. Power-plant of aeroplanes—Fitting two engines to obviate
involuntary descents. …………………………………….
TENTH SECTION THE TRAINING OF ARMY AIRMEN …………………….
I. French thoroughness—An expert’s tribute—Sound training
all-important. …………………………………………..
II. How the military airman is "schooled"—His course of
instruction described. ……………………………………
III. Rules for training—Dummy aeroplanes—A pupil’s first "hops." .
IV. Cross-country flights—The vol plané—Difficulty of first
observation tests from an aeroplane. ……………………….
V. Finishing work at French schools—Practical tests—German
thoroughness—Energy of English officers. ……………………
ELEVENTH SECTION THE COST OF WAR AEROPLANES …………………..
I. Why manufacturers charge high prices—Cost of experimental
work—Building of trial machines. …………………………..
II. Economy of a large military order for machines—The incidental
expenses. ……………………………………………….
III. Question of renewals—General cheapness of an air-corps, as
compared with other forms of armament. ……………………..
OUR AERIAL PROGRAMME FOR 1912-13 …………………………….
TWELFTH SECTION PROBLEM OF ARTILLERY FIRE AND THE AEROPLANE …….
I. Conflicting opinions as to an aeroplane’s
vulnerability—Experiments which have been carried out. ……….
II. Shrapnel shell—Question of hitting a vital part of the
aeroplane—Difficulty of identifying friend or foe. …………..
THIRTEENTH SECTION DESTRUCTIVE POTENTIALITIES OF WEIGHT-CARRYING
AEROPLANES ………………………………………………..
I. What a modern-type machine can raise—Load of two men, and
explosives. ……………………………………………..
II. Effect of aerial bombardment upon cities and troops—German
tests. ………………………………………………….
FOURTEENTH SECTION WAR IN THE AIR BETWEEN HOSTILE AEROPLANES ……
I. Certainty of a combat between aeroplanes in actual
warfare—Air-scouts protected by aerial "cruisers." …………..
II. An encounter in the air—Importance to an army of an aerial
victory. ………………………………………………..
FIFTEENTH SECTION VALUE OF THE AEROPLANE IN NAVAL WARFARE ………
I. Machines for coastal and high-seas work—Question of flying in
winds. ………………………………………………….
II. Interesting tests—Machines for rising from water, and landing
on a ship’s deck. ………………………………………..
SIXTEENTH SECTION AERIAL WORK IN THE FRENCH AND GERMAN AUTUMN
MANOEUVRES, 1911 …………………………………………..
I. French successes—Proof of the value of organisation—Flights in
high winds. ……………………………………………..
II. Work in the German manœuvres—An instance of the utility of
air-scouts—Reconnoitring from high altitudes. ……………….
III. Aeroplanes in actual warfare—What Italian airmen accomplished
in Tripoli—Scouting and bomb-dropping under service conditions. .
IV. A final word—Conclusions to be arrived at—Problems
outstanding. …………………………………………….

*ILLUSTRATIONS*

CLAUDE GRAHAME-WHITE. Winner of the Gordon-Bennett Aviation Cup, 1910; author of "The Story of the Aeroplane"; and joint author, with Harry Harper, of "The Aeroplane: Past, Present, and Future," "Heroes of the Air," and "The Aeroplane in War." …………………….. THE NIEUPORT MONOPLANE. Photo, M. Branger. This exceedingly interesting machine, which won the great French Military Trials, is generally admitted to be one of the most efficient flying machines in existence. A similar machine can be seen at work in Hendon, where it is piloted by Mr. Grahame-White. …………………………. BRITISH-BUILT SCOUTING MONOPLANE. This aircraft, an exceedingly fast, single-seated machine, represents the type of machine now favoured by French authorities for urgent, rapid, general reconnaissance. Its constructors are Messrs. Short Brothers. …… READY FOR A SCOUTING FLIGHT. Here a latest-type reconnoitring monoplane, with its observer in the front seat and the pilot behind him, is seen just about to start upon an aerial voyage. The machine is a British-built Bristol, such as will be used in the forthcoming military trials. ………………………………………….. TWO-SEATED, BRITISH-BUILT WAR MACHINE. The Blackburn military-type monoplane, with accomodation for pilot and observer, has already made many successful flights; and it is expected to perform meritoriously in the War Office trials. In some respects it resembles the graceful Antoinette. ………………………….. THE ENGINE-IN-FRONT BIPLANE. With the above machine—a type increasingly used for Service work—the Naval officers now experimenting at Eastchurch, Isle of Sheppy, have been carrying out recent tests. It was designed, and built, by Messrs. Short Brothers, who are now constructing special aeroplanes for Naval use. …….. MILITARY BIPLANE WITH TWO ENGINES. This exceedingly interesting machine, which possesses especial significance from the military point of view, is equipped with two Gnome motors. One drives two propellers placed in front of the main-planes, and the other actuates a single rear propeller. Normally, both engines run at easy speed; but, should one fail in flight, the other, by being accelerated, will maintain the machine in the air. Its designers and builders are Messrs. Short Brothers. ………………………… BUILDING WAR AEROPLANES. In this picture—taken in the Bristol works—skilled artizans are seen busy with the building of the bodies of a consignment of military-type monoplanes. Although apparently frail, these frameworks are—owing to their method of construction—immensely strong. ……………………………… WEIGHT-CARRYING WAR BIPLANE. By Fitting "extensions" to the upper main-plane of the machine, as seen above, it is possible to achieve sustained flight with two, or even three occupants—or, should necessity arise, with a pilot and an appreciable load of explosives! The actual machine photographed is a Bristol, flying over the Brooklands aerodrome. ……………………………………… WAR MONOPLANES "VOL PLANE." In the above picture, a two-seated, military type Bristol monoplane is seen descending, with engine stopped and propeller motionless, from a reconnoitring flight. Pilot and passenger are plainly discernable. ………………………. MAPS FOR MILITARY AIRMEN. Photo, M. Roe. The French authorities are busy with the preparation of a complete set of "air maps" for the use of the military pilots, when flying from point to point. A section of one of these maps—which are coloured—is illustrated above. …………………………………………………… THE PILOT’S SEAT. Photo, M. Branger. In the illustration above is seen the driving seat of a military-type Blériot monoplane, with the airman’s map, in its case, fixed immediately before him. ………. PILOT AND "OBSERVER." Photo, M. Roe. The above photograph shows a military-type Breguet biplane, as used in the French manœuvres, with pilot and observer in their places. …………………………. MILITARY AIRMAN’S REPORT. Photo, M. Branger. After descending from a reconnoitring flight on a Blériot monoplane, in the French manœuvres, the pilot seen above is imparting details of what he has observed to another officer. ……………………………….. TRANSPORT OF WAR AEROPLANES Photo, M. Roe. In the manner depicted above—and also by means of motor lorries—were military aeroplanes transported from point to point during the French manœuvres. …… MOTOR TRANSPORT. Photo, M. Branger. This picture shows how a Breguet military biplane, with its main-planes folded by the sides of its body, can be towed from point to point behind a motor-lorry. …… TRAVELLING WORKSHOP. Photo, M. Branger. In the French manœuvres, a completely-equipped aeroplane repair shop, in the form of a motor-wagon, followed the military airmen as they moved from point to point. One of these invaluable "ateliers" is pictured above. …