Independent Air Force
Independent Air Force Inter-Allied Independent Air Force from 26 October 1918 | |
---|---|
Active | 6 June – 14 November 1918 |
Allegiance | |
Commander-in-Chief | Sir Hugh Trenchard |
GOC | C L Courtney |
The Independent Air Force (IAF), also known as the Independent Force or the Independent Bombing Force and later known as the Inter-Allied Independent Air Force, was a First World War strategic bombing force which was part of Britain's Royal Air Force and was used to strike against German railways, aerodromes, and industrial centres without co-ordination with the Army or Navy.
Establishment
From late 1916 to early 1917 the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) had attempted a co-ordinated series of bombing raids on German-held targets. Whilst the attacks were generally unsuccessful the principle of deep penetration bombing raids against strategic targets was established. General Jan Smuts, a member of the War Cabinet, prepared the Smuts Report which recommended that a separate Air Ministry and Air Force should be set up, independent of the Army and Navy and that a strategic bomber force should be formed whose sole purpose was to attack Germany.
Following the perceived success in bombing Germany of the
After Parliamentary approval in November 1917, the
The Independent Air Force came into being on 6 June 1918 with its headquarters situated near Nancy in France. Trenchard took over tactical command of the VIII Brigade from Haig on 5 June 1918 and complete control on 15 June 1918, when Newall became the deputy commander of the Independent Force.[2] As commander, Trenchard reported directly to Sir William Weir the Air Minister, bypassing the Chief of the Air Staff, Frederick Sykes.[5]
Composition
The Independent Air Force eventually consisted of nine squadrons of aircraft which were equipped with
- de Havilland DH4s[6]
- de Havilland DH9s and de Havilland DH.9As
- Handley Page 0/400s
- Royal Aircraft Factory FE2bs
- Sopwith Camels for escort duties
No 41 Wing was split into two wings to form VIII Brigade and comprised Nos 55, 99 and 104 squadrons responsible for day-bombing, with the 83rd Wing consisted of two night-bombing squadrons, (No 100 and No 216). Additional squadrons were added to the IAF before the Armistice; Nos 97, 115 and 215 squadrons (equipped with the new Handley-Page 0/400 bomber) and No 110 Squadron with the DH-9A, operational through the summer of 1918.
Actions
The IAF commenced operations in June 1918, when 12 DH4s of 55 Squadron were despatched to bomb targets around
The Independent Forces attacked, amongst others, the following targets:[7][8][9]
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A considerable portion of the Independent Air Force’s efforts was in tactical support of the Allied armies and the war ended before the IAF could conduct any sustained strategic bombing. Thus the Independent Force achieved little material effect on the German war industries, in return for many losses in men and machines.
Inter-Allied Independent Air Force
Just before the end of the war, on 26 October 1918, the Independent Air Force was renamed the Inter-Allied Independent Air Force and comprised British, French, Italian and American squadrons. Trenchard remained the commander-in-chief but he came under the command of Marshal Ferdinand Foch, the Generalissimo of Allied forces. On 14 November, the Inter-Allied Independent Air Force was dissolved and its British squadrons (still titled the Independent Air Force) were assigned to John Salmond, the commander of the RAF in the field and Brigadier-General Christopher Courtney succeeded Trenchard.[11] The Independent Air Force was disbanded in late 1918 or early 1919.[12]
References
Notes
- ISBN 978-0-7110-0132-9.
- ^ a b "No. 31101". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 December 1918. p. 133.
- doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/36552. (Subscription or UK public library membershiprequired.)
- ^ "C L N Newall_P".
- ^ https://docs.google.com/gview?a=v&q=cache:b1N-aUpDBY4J:https://www.afresearch.org/skins/rims/q_mod_be0e99f3-fc56-4ccb-8dfe-670c0822a153/q_act_downloadpaper/q_obj_8a72589a-4dd7-4177-85ce-d0d176a9ee40/display.aspx%3Frs%3Denginespage+capper+dgma&hl=en&gl=uk[bare URL]
- ^ a b British Military Aviation in 1918 - Part 2 Archived 30 June 2012 at archive.today RAF Museum. Retrieved 14 March 2008
- ^ a b "No. 31101". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 December 1918. p. 135.
- ^ "No. 31101". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 December 1918. p. 136.
- ^ Moyes 1976, p. 315.
- ^ Moyes 1976, p. 316
- doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/30975. Retrieved 10 November 2009. (Subscription or UK public library membershiprequired.)
- ^ "Commands - N Europe_P". Archived from the original on 4 December 2014. Retrieved 17 February 2015.
Bibliography
- Morris, Alan First of the Many: The story of Independent Force, RAF. London: Jarrolds, 1968. OCLC 464310497
- Moyes, Philip J. R. Bomber Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft. London: Macdonald and Jane's, 2nd edition 1976. ISBN 0-354-01027-1.