WW1 In The Air Flashcards
Aircraft before 1914
Mostly experimental
When was the RFC founded?
1912
What was the navy equivalent of the RFC?
RNAS
How many RFC squadrons were there in 1914 at the outbreak of war?
5
How many squadrons went to France with the BEF and what was there role?
4 went, role was reconnaissance
How many aircraft were in each squadron, so how many men and planes went to France?
12 per squadron
63 aircraft and 900 men
What was the role of RNAS?
Coastal patrols
Scouting for the navy
Attacking german airship bases
Why did the RNAS get given the responsibility they did in 1913?
Admiral fisher saw a potential threat to the fleet from german zeppelin airships
First attack of the RNAS
4 Planes were sent to bomb zeppelin bases in Düsseldorf on the 22nd of September 1914
Only one plane reached and dropped 3 bombs
2 failed to explode and 1 missed
RNAS attack on 21st November 1914
4 Avro 504 aircraft raided Zeppelin sheds on Lake Constance in Germany
They were unable to fly that far so had to be moved to belfort by train then reconstructed
They dropped 11 bombs, 2 hit airship base which damaged one zeppelin and blew up gasworks
One British plane was hit by german gunfire and forced to land, the pilot was attacked by hostile civilians, then treated well as a POW
What was the first RFC ‘victory’?
August 1914
When 3 unarmed RFC planes forced a german plane to land
One of the RFC aircrafts also landed and the crew (2 men) chased the Germans into the woods and set fire to their plane
What was the initial role of the RFC?
Reconnaissance to support the army’s ground offensives
Why did the RFC role change during the war?
Because commanders appreciated the role aircraft could play in unlocking the stalemate trench warfare in ww1 had come to
What activity did pilots try after role was expanded from reconnaissance/
Aerial bombing
At first dropped grenades and home-made petrol bombs
We’re fitted with wing racks carrying bombs that pilots released via cable by 1915
Who commanded the RFC for most of the war?
Hugh trenchard
What was trunchards policy for the RFC?
To attach whenever possible
To co-operate with the army through reconnaissance and low level bombing
To maintain British morale and weaken german morale
Impact of aircraft on the morale of British troops
They were cheered up whereas they were disheartened if an enemy plane was seen
What did the RFC need to be an effective new arm of the military?
Had to innovate a complex logistical system
Including airfields and store depots linked to the frontlines but also factories
Needed a constant supply of aircraft,pilots,ammunition, cameras, wireless equipment
Who was responsible for the RFC innovation and successful organisation?
Robert Brooke-Popham
Sir David Henderson
Trenchard nagged government for better planes and pilots
Haig was also onboard and saw the value of aircraft
How many did the RFC lose in the spring of 1917?
More than 700 planes and 473 pilots
Haig and trenchard were criticised for being wasteful of material and lives
The number of British aircraft at the start of the war
113
number of french aircraft at the start of the war
160
number of german aircraft at the start of the war
246
Size of the RFC in France by 1915
They had 12 squadrons and more than 160 aircraft
Size of the RFC in France in 1916
27 squadrons and more than 600 aircraft
When was an air ministry set up?
January 1918
When was the RAF formed?
1st April 1918 the RFC and RNAS merged
Size of the RAF by the end of the war
300’000 personnel and more than 22’000 aircraft
