WW1 - War In The Air

Question 1

When were observation balloons first used in warfare

Answer 1

1794

Question 2

Why were Ariel balloons used in warfare throughout the 19th century

Answer 2

Reconnaissance

Question 3

From what year did the Royal engineers had a balloon section

Answer 3

1890

Question 4

When did the wright brothers develop he first aeroplane

Answer 4

1903

Question 5

Did the military hold a progressive attitude towards planes in 1903

Answer 5

No they were slow to appreciate the potential of the aeroplane as a weapon.

Question 6

When did the US procure its first wright plane

Answer 6

1909

Question 7

In what year did the US experiment with bomb-drops

Answer 7

1910

Question 8

When did the french make a trail reconnaissance flight using a Farman aircraft

Answer 8

1910

Question 9

When did the Italians carry out its first operational air reconnaissance

Answer 9

October 1911 (during their war with turkey)

Question 10

When was the Royal flying corps founded

Answer 10

April 1912

Question 11

When was the Royal naval air service founded

Answer 11

July 1914

Question 12

What was the purpose of aircrafts at the start of the war

Answer 12

Aircrafts were used as “scouts” for reconnaissance

Question 13

How fast were aircrafts in 1914

Answer 13

Around 70 mph

Question 14

What were the first aircrafts made of

Answer 14

Light wood and fabric

Question 15

At the start of WW1, how many aeroplanes did Britain have

Answer 15

100

Question 16

How many were employed in the aircraft industry by 1918 in Britain

Answer 16

350,000 workers

Question 17

What was the first city bombing by air

Answer 17

When the Germans bombed Paris on the 30th August 1914

Question 18

When did the first German bomb hit Britain

Answer 18

December 1914

Question 19

What were the aircrafts used by the Germans in city bombing runs

Answer 19

The zeppelin airship and gotha bombing planes

Question 20

When did London first suffer from city bombing

Answer 20

1917

Question 21

What did England introduce to tackle the threat from the air

Answer 21

Anti-aircraft Defense (AA guns)

Question 22

At the start of the war, how were aircrafts weaponised

Answer 22

Pilots had a pistol

Question 23

How big were the bombs that planes dropped following the air revolution

Answer 23

1000 pounds

Question 24

What was the first independent airforce in the world

Answer 24

The Royal Air Force

Question 25

When was the RAF established

Answer 25

1918

Question 26

What was the propaganda role of the airforce

Answer 26

Fighter pilot “aces” were hailed as heroic “knights of the air” despite it being no more violent than trench warfare

Question 27

How had air supremacy in 1918

Answer 27

The allies

Question 28

Who would traditionally gathers intelligence about the enemy army

Answer 28

Scouts and spies

Question 29

What was the traditional way that the navy conducted reconnaissance

Answer 29

Used fast ships to locate and the. “Shadow” the enemy fleet

Question 30

What was the first war that Britain used reconnaissance ballons

Answer 30

The second boer war

Question 31

When were airships invented

Answer 31

The 1850’s

Question 32

Who flew the first German airship in 1900

Answer 32

Ferdinand Von zeppelin

Question 33

In what year did the German army acquire its first zeppelin

Answer 33

1906

Question 34

What was the name of the first British airship

Answer 34

Beta 1

Question 35

When did the British army get the beta 1

Answer 35

1910

Question 36

What did the British army chose to use over airship as they found them to be more useful in the battlefield

Answer 36

Kite balloon

Question 37

How many feet could kite balloons ascend

Answer 37

4,000 feet

Question 38

How many miles was it possible to observe in a kite balloon

Answer 38

15 miles

Question 39

How were kite balloons defended

Answer 39

AA guns

Question 40

What made kite balloons had to shoot down

Answer 40

Bullets could pass through the fabric without igniting the gas inside

Question 41

What invention made kite balloons vulnerable to attack

Answer 41

Incendiary ammunition They would set fire to the kite balloons

Question 42

What was the ratio of British balloons to German balloons

Answer 42

15 to 1

Question 43

How effective were kite balloons in battle reconnaissance

Answer 43

Incredibly effective, the Germans complained they could pick out individual soldiers or machine gun posts and order artillery

Question 44

What was the first purpose of the Royal fling corps squadrons in 1914

Answer 44

To support the army by scouting and artillery spotting

Question 45

When was the first royal flying corps reconnaissance mission

Answer 45

19th August 1914

Question 46

Who flew the first RFC recon mission

Answer 46

Gilbert Mapplebeck and Phillip Joubert

Question 47

What happens to captain Mappleback on the ford RFC recon mission

Answer 47

He got lost and had to land near Cambrai and ask for directions

Question 48

What was the impact of mappleback getting lost

Answer 48

It fuelled scepticism around aeronautics in wars

Question 49

How did mappleback die in 1915

Answer 49

Testing a new aircraft

Question 50

How old was mappleback when he died

Answer 50

23

Question 51

What were the first military aircrafts called

Answer 51

Scouts

Question 52

What date was avro 504 scout of the 5th squadron shit down by German rifle fire over Belgium

Answer 52

22 August 1914

Question 53

What was the problem with aerial reconnaissance from aircraft

Answer 53

It was difficult since pilots could not identify accurately soldiers and trenches below

Question 54

Why were Union Kacks painted on the bottom of allied aircrafts

Answer 54

Often British soldiers shot down British planes as they were unaware who was the enemy and who was RFC this distinguished British and french aircrafts from German whi adopted a black cross insignia

Question 55

When was the RFCs wireless flight first operational in France

Answer 55

September 1914

Question 56

How many pounds was the first airborne radio transmitter

Answer 56

72 pounds

Question 57

What replaced the first bulky radio transmitters in 1915

Answer 57

The sterling lightweight set (under 20 pounds)

Question 58

What was the impact of the radio planes on the enemy

Answer 58

They became apprehensive to open fire on them as British planes would quickly respond in their Defense

Question 59

What was the role of aircraft in artillery

Answer 59

They could see the target that the gunner couldn’t see and tell them how to correct their aim

Question 60

How did aircrafts signal where the enemy artillery positions were

Answer 60

They dropped ribbons and circled above

Question 61

What’s artillery spitting system was set up in 1915

Answer 61

The zone call system

Question 62

What was the zone call system

Answer 62

Pilots sent out target information by radio in morse code to RFC signallers who were assigned to artillery batteries

Question 63

By may 1916, how many British aircraft were using the wireless zone call system

Answer 63

300 British aircraft

Question 64

By may 1916, how many ground stations were their in the zone call system

Answer 64

550 ground stations

Question 65

What was the downside of the zone call system

Answer 65

The wireless air elks were easily destroyed and ground operators were descended by loud artillery shelling

Question 66

Who experimented with air photography in 1912

Answer 66

Fredrick laws

Question 67

Was airplanes or balloons better for air photography

Answer 67

Easier from balloons but the aeroplanes mobility made it invaluable

Question 68

What role did sir photographs play in intelligence of the enemy

Answer 68

Photos were assembled into mosaic maps of the German lines allowing for detailed maps of German trenches and battle fronts

Question 69

What was the first battle which planes provided air intelligence

Answer 69

The Somme offences in 1916

Question 70

How many photos did the RFC produce over the battle of the Somme

Answer 70

19,000

Question 71

How many prints did the RFC produce if the battle of the Somme

Answer 71

430,000 prints

Question 72

As a result of air reconnaissance, what unit did the french establish in 1915

Answer 72

The first camouflage unit

Question 73

What does “camouflage” actually mean

Answer 73

To make up for the stage

Question 74

When did Britain set up its first camouflage unit

Answer 74

1916

Question 75

What was the name of the first British camouflage unit

Answer 75

Special works park

Question 76

What truck did the camouflage unit use to fool snipers

Answer 76

Fake trees concealing an observer or gunner

Question 77

In March 1915, how many scout planes did the RFC have

Answer 77

85 aircraft in France