Fighter and Bomber Aircraft of WWII
During World War II, aviation firmly established itself as an important part of warfare. Countries taking part in WWII quickly learned that dominating the air meant winning the war. Before WWII, most of the strategies for air warfare were mainly theoretical, since WWI had little effective air warfare, and most air to air combat at the time was primitive.
Fighter aircraft are military aircraft which are designed mostly for air to air combat against other aircraft; to gain air superiority over an area, or to take down enemy airplanes. With air superiority, this meant that enemy planes and vehicles had a difficult time getting through the area, which could effectively block off supply routes, and that friendly planes and vehicles could pass through …show more content…
At the time, Canada possessed the fourth largest air force in the world, and the fifth largest naval surface fleet. Canada’s aviation industry burgeoned during WWII, where over 16,000 military aircraft (two thirds of which were training aircraft) such as the Avro Anson and the North American Harvard were created for the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan. The BCATP was an agreement on December 17, 1939 between Canada, Britain, Australia and New Zealand, which made Canada the focus of the British Empire’s wide scheme to instruct aircrew. This was a major Canadian contribution to Allied air superiority in WWII, and continued until March 31, 1945. US President at the time Franklin D. Roosevelt called the BCATP the “Aerodrome of Democracy”. What Canada had that other Allies did not was lots of air training space out of proximity of enemy aircraft, good climate for flying, close access to the American industry, and relative proximity to the UK via North Atlantic shipping lanes. Canada was also home to major recruiting and training organizations during WWI, so Britain decided to rely on Canada again when the international situation became worse in the
During World War II, aviation firmly established itself as an important part of warfare. Countries taking part in WWII quickly learned that dominating the air meant winning the war. Before WWII, most of the strategies for air warfare were mainly theoretical, since WWI had little effective air warfare, and most air to air combat at the time was primitive.
Fighter aircraft are military aircraft which are designed mostly for air to air combat against other aircraft; to gain air superiority over an area, or to take down enemy airplanes. With air superiority, this meant that enemy planes and vehicles had a difficult time getting through the area, which could effectively block off supply routes, and that friendly planes and vehicles could pass through …show more content…
At the time, Canada possessed the fourth largest air force in the world, and the fifth largest naval surface fleet. Canada’s aviation industry burgeoned during WWII, where over 16,000 military aircraft (two thirds of which were training aircraft) such as the Avro Anson and the North American Harvard were created for the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan. The BCATP was an agreement on December 17, 1939 between Canada, Britain, Australia and New Zealand, which made Canada the focus of the British Empire’s wide scheme to instruct aircrew. This was a major Canadian contribution to Allied air superiority in WWII, and continued until March 31, 1945. US President at the time Franklin D. Roosevelt called the BCATP the “Aerodrome of Democracy”. What Canada had that other Allies did not was lots of air training space out of proximity of enemy aircraft, good climate for flying, close access to the American industry, and relative proximity to the UK via North Atlantic shipping lanes. Canada was also home to major recruiting and training organizations during WWI, so Britain decided to rely on Canada again when the international situation became worse in the