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This is Volume One of The Army Air Forces in World War II, titled Plans and Early Operations, January 1939 to August 1942, edited by Wesley Frank Craven and James Lea Cate. The University of Chicago Press first published it in 1948, and the Office of Air Force History reprinted it in 1983. The front matter explains how the AAF historical program was set up during the war. The index covers Pacific, Atlantic and European operations, and nothing in the text concerns unidentified aerial phenomena.
“Cairo”26 pages
T H E D E F E N S E O F A U S T R A L I A He showed greater concern, however, for modification of certain features in both American and Australian organization that would pro- vide a higher degree of flexibility in the employment of air units. Though for a time an attempt was made to hold the American groups intact, they were soon divided to provide individual squadrons for defense of the more exposed areas, and General Brett came to feel that the squadron rather than the group would prove the basic tactical unit in later offensive operations. He proposed the establishment of air headquarters in each defensive area, prepared to accept and operate any number of squadrons assigned under a general plan to concentrate tactical units in accordance with a changing tactical situation, and with a view to providing a command structure that in itself would be flexible enough to move forward in offensive operations as the occa- sion required. Such a headquarters would remain in the original area only for so long as it was necessary and then, in General Brett’s words, “would leap-frog to take up a command a t some newly acquired point.” 4 6 Inadequate personnel and other considerations made it im- possible to follow this proposal, but General Brett sought greater flexibility of control by the establishment on 4 May 1942 of U.S. Air Commands No. I and No. 2 , located respectively in the northwest and northeast defensive areas. Commanded by Col. Albert L. Sneed a t Darwin and Brig. Gen. Martin F. Scanlon at Townsville, the two headquarters were supposed to be prepared for direction of all types of air operations. Actually, the American planes remained subject to the control of the area commanders, and before the month was out the two commands had been dissolved and their planes had been assigned for operations, in the one instance, to the commanding general of the land forces of the Northern Territory and, in the other, to the com- mander of the New Guinea Force. Though it was understood that these officers, who were themselves directly responsible to the com- mander of the Allied Land Forces, would not interfere with a control of air operations by air officers except in the event of an imminent attack, there was a feeling among AAF personnel that an effective organization remained yet to be attained.4T On the other hand, there was cause for satisfaction with decisions reached regarding the organization of air service. On 2 7 April ;i new command, the United States Army Air Services under Maj. Gen. Rush B. Lincoln, took over the responsibility for air service from USAFIA. At first there was some confusion as to the extent and exact 42 1
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