Development of Military Night Aviation to 1919

摘要

This study examines the development of military night aviation from its origins through the First World War. Emphasis is on the evolution of night flying in those countries which fought on the Western Front, namely France, Germany, Great Britain, and the United States. While night flying occurred In other theaters, the most intense air effort was clearly in the west. There, belligerents pressed aviation technology and tactics to the limits; the skies of northern France and Flanders offered the only opportunity for movement across the stagnated front. Another important consideration was the availability of rich documentation concerning night aerial activity in the theater. To appreciate the rapid development of night military aviation during the First World War, one first needs to understand the state of night flying prior to August 1914. Numerous aeronautical Journals of the period offer articles exploring the technical problems associated with night flight. Additionally the New York Times provides a useful but more general day-to-day account of the evolution of flying during darkness. Source material for the war period is quite extensive.