Birth of British Airpower

The Birth of British Airpower describes how Hugh Trenchard, a man with few leadershipskills, became a much-loved and inspirational commander who laid thefoundation for British airpower on the Western Front in World War I and createdthe preconditions for the establishment of the world's first independent air service,the Royal Air Force. Author Peter Dye explores how friendship can overcome significant personal and character deficiencies and how, by assembling the right seniorleadership team, Trenchard achieved greatness. The book also examines how the development of airpower doctrine in the First World Warowed as much to chance as to careful planning and how air superiority was achievedonly through sustained effort, underpinned by an effective and responsive logisticsystem. Finally, it explains how the ethos of the postwar air force was built aroundthese experiences and the collective effort of all those involved in the air war.