Top 3 best decisions per country, in field of military aviation

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gjs238

Tech Sergeant
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Mar 26, 2009
To divert from bashing and pointing out mistakes, what would be the top three best decisions, that compete for the 'podium places' for strokes of genius? Time scope - 1930's to end of WW2.
 
For the British

1) Adoption of the EATS scheme. Just about guaranteed victory for the allies as they out produced the germans several times over for pilots

2) Restoring control of the fleet Air Arm to the RN. better late than never

3) Establishing the RAF as the third arm of the British defence forces at the end of WWI. Assured the RAFs survival, gave it a voice in the poliitcal wilderness and intense fighting for limited resources during the lean pacifist years
 
For the RAAF


1) Setting up the CAC in 1935, with LJ Wackett at its head. Provided the necessary impetus for enhanced home production and design

2) appointing Wackett as the head of the CAC. He was instrumental in pushing through the Wirraway design, pressing on for the production of the Beafort in Australia, and later the Beafighter, and from that having the necessary connections with US industry to (relatively) easily move away from the British engine manufactures when they hung us out to dry, and move to the production of the twin Wasp production. Adapting the types that had been selected for production to use the new engine with a minimum of fuss.

3) Insisting that a proportion of home production and pilots trained in the new EATS scheme be retained for RAAF use in the PTO.
 
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For the British, the specification of single seat fighters in 1934-35 armed with eight machine guns (Spitfire, Hurricane) or four cannon (Whirlwind). The consequences of going to war in 1939 with single seat fighters armed with two or four machine guns do not bear thinking about. This was considerably heavier armament than that being adopted by foreign air forces at the same time.

More generally the establishment of Operational Research Sections in all commands and the appointment of commanders who would listen to them. The latter may have been more by luck than judgement but the various Cs-in-C of Bomber, Coastal and Fighter Commands all appreciated the importance of their work and acted on the results of their research.

Cheers

Steve
 
The introduction of fighter control system, helped by radar and observer network was a major thing.
Another - introduction of airborne radar and other electronical means.
The 8-gun fighter powered by current best V-12 engine.
 
tomo pauk said:
The introduction of fighter control system, helped by radar and observer network was a major thing.
Click to expand...

Yes, without that, giving the ability to get your heavily armed single seat fighters into a position to intercept an enemy formation the fighter is more or less useless.

We often use hindsight to judge decisions made 70 or 80 years ago, but all the above show some considerable foresight and were by no means obvious choices or decisions at the time.

Cheers

Steve
 
Bang on the money there Steve.
 
Germany:
- introduction of 'finger four' fighter tactics
- introduction of Bf 109 as the main fighter vs. other contenders
- introduction of He 111 as the main bomber
 
I agree with those three, but some, reading number two, will raise the Fw 187....again
As well as adopting the He 111 as the main bomber when it did, the RLM also fairly quickly reduced its production in favour of the Ju 88 when that became available, another good decision.
Cheers
Steve
 
The Fw 187, despite it's potential (and I believe it have had plenty of potential) was never a competitor against the Bf 109, but against Bf 110.

For the USA, perhaps these 3:
- opting for multiple sources of procurement for many important types, thus, along with increase in production, acquiring a 'cushion' in case one of the sources botched the production job
- early strive for engines with multiple stage compressors, whether turbo- or gear-driven
- not falling for 'niche' designs, at least not producing them in series
 
tomo pauk said:
- introduction of Bf 109 as the main fighter vs. other contenders
Click to expand...
I honestly feel that the He112 never got a fair chance as a production fighter and proved it was capable when they installed a DB600 and put it through trials. Aside from it's turning abilities, it had good range.

And to be honest, I hadn't thought of the Fw187 until it was mentioned!
 
GrauGeist said:
I honestly feel that the He112 never got a fair chance as a production fighter and proved it was capable when they installed a DB600 and put it through trials.
Click to expand...

It was too late. The correct decision had already been taken and the Bf 109 selected for series production. It is a rare case of the RLM making a decision and sticking to it.
By the time the He 112 B came along the RLM should have been looking forward to the next generation of fighters, like the Fw 190, not back to improving old ones.
Cheers
Steve
 
Very true. The decision to press on with Fw 190, despite it's teething troubles, was another right one.
 
Blimey Tomo, we seem to be in general agreement about these decisions....something must be wrong

Had the Bf 109 been a disaster for some reason, unlikely for an aircraft already flying and performing trials before the decision was made to produce it, the RLM still had the He 112 to fall back on.

The British, before either the Spitfire or Hurricane had flown, only had the Gloster F.7/30 as back up. Luckily both the first two worked okay!

Cheers

Steve
 
The Soviets:
- quick relocation and expansion of factories producing, not only, the hardware for the VVS
- introduction of belt fed & lightweight 20 mm cannon (and other gun armament that went in service), enabled them to field the small and light fighters that still have the punch and as good performance as possible
- embracing and modifying Anglo-American aircraft received, to suit their needs as good as possible, even if the types were not highly regarded in the countries of origin
 
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