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The Army Air Forces in World War II, Vol. 1 (archived PDF)

Air Force Historical Studies Office · 863 pages · text from the file's own layer

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.

  • p. 47 …s Independent Force, the whole of the French Air Division (strategic reserve), and Italian and Portuguese…
  • p. 113 …Japanese Air Power The Japanese air forces, divided into separate army and navy air arms, had…
  • p. 119 …naval air service, and a colonial air force.” For their air doctrines, the Italians depended almost…
  • p. 120 …In its first “combat” test during the thirties the Italian Air Force faced no real opposition…
  • p. 121 …The hope was not fulfilled, for numerous weaknesses in the Italian Air Force rapidly came to…
  • p. 122 …The fundamental weakness of the Italian Air Force was not in its theory of air power…
  • p. 197 …naval forces, and within prescribed boundaries to destroy any German and Italian naval, air, and ground…
  • p. 386 …More threatening were Rommel’s forces in North Africa, for the very existence of the air…
  • p. 554 …Chennault, who since 1937 had been serving as special adviser to the Chinese Air Force. Known…
  • p. 705 …Brett, Chief of the Air Corps, to England for study of the problem. Specifically, he was…
  • p. 752 …USSBS, Japanese Air Power. 9. Notes on the Italian Air Force, in special file of Brig…
  • p. 805 …History, First Air Force. 44. History, Caribbean Air Force, 8 May 1941-6 Mar. 1942, p…
  • p. 851 …E S Italian Air Force: 82-85; development, Italian East Africa, 84 Italy, Air Ministry, 82…
  • p. 857 …See Italian Air Force. Reinforcements. See theaters. Renault works, 593 Replacement Control Depot, ~ z t h…
N O T E S T O P A G E S 4 8 2 - 9 0
Brett reports; CM-IN-6753 (5-24-42),
MacArthur to C/S, #798, 24 May 1942.
30. See sources in n. 29.
31. CM-IN-5228 (7-15-42), GHQ to
C/S #CIIO, 1 5 July 1942; interview with
Maj. Tom A. Montgomery, in History,
ASC in SWPA; Hq. US. Army Air
Services to C G AAF, 7 July 1942, ibid.;
AAF, #89, 1 5 July 1942; CM-IN-0998
July 1942; interview with Capt. Vincent
L. Snyder (19th Bomb. Gp.).
32. It should be noted that General
MacArthur had felt as early as May that
his air force could be strengthened by
reorganization. Since this reorganization
did not begin until August 1942, it will
be discussed in a subsequent volume.
(Msg., Arnold to C G USAFIA, 10 May
1942; CM-IN-8604 [6-26-42], GHQ
SWPA to AGWAR, #74, 26 June 1942;
C M - I N - ~ I ~ O Z[6-30-4~1, GHQ SWPA
to AGWAR, #260, 30 June 1942.)
33. CM-l’N-1697 (8-5-42), MacArthur
to C/S, 3 Aug. 1942.
CM-IN-5037 (7-15-42). GHQ to C G
(7-3-42), GHQ to C G A M , #A159 3
NOTES TO CHAPTER 14
I. History, Hq. Tenth Air Force,
1942; memo for C/S from AAF Hq., 20
Feb. 1942; CM-OUT-29, AGWAR to
Brereton, #AF 2/442, 2 5 Feb. 1942; CM-
O U T , AGWAR to Brereton, #AF 3/7,
I Mar. 1942; CM-IN, Brereton to Arnold,
6 Mar. 1942.
2 . The road from Haiphong, Indo-
China, to Yunnan was closed by the
Vichy government in 1940 under pressure
from the Japanese. (Edward R. Stettinius,
Jr., Lend-Lease, Weapon for Victory, p.
111.)
3. Ibid., p. 109.
4. Instructions given General Clagett
may be found in ltr., C/S to Brig. Gen.
H.G. Clagett, Philippine Dept., 29 Mar.
194’-
5 . For formation and implementation
of the policy of air aid to China, see
AAG 000-800,l’ndia-China and 450, India-
China; also, n. 4, in AAF Historical
Study No. 12, The Tenth Air Force,
1942, chap. i.
7 2 4
6. Daniel Arnstein, Marco Hellman,
and Harold Davis, traffic and trucking
experts, reached Chungking in July.
John Baker, another American, was made
administrator of the Burma Road.
Largely as a result of their efforts the
tonnage leaving Lashio monthly for China
was increased from 4,000 early in 1941 to
15,000 by November. This included gas
used by the trucks en route. (Stettinius,
Lend-Lease, pp. I I I ff.)
7. Ibid., p. 116; memo for C/S by
Brig. Gen. L.T. Gerow, Acting AC/S,
WPD, 26 Aug. 1941.
8. For the relationship that the
Magruder mission was to bear to Chen-
nault’s AVG, see memo for Lauchlin
Currie from Oscar Cox, Lend-Lease
Administration, 2 8 Nov. 1941.
9. Claire L. Chennault, “Role of De-
fensive Pursuit,” Coast Artillery Journal,
Nov.-Dec. 1933, pp. 411-17; Jan.-Feb.
10. Stettinius, Lend-Lease, p. 115.
I I . See above, n. 5 .
1 2 . Memo for C/S from Gen. Spaatz,
C/AS, 3 Dec. 1941.
13. Army Air Force Study Pertain-
ing to Proposed Reinforcement of China
with Army Air Force Units for the Pur-
pose of Assisting the Chinese to Resist
the Possible Japanese Attack Against
Kunming, 20 Nov. 1941.
14. Memo for C/S from Gen. Spaatz,
C/AS, 3 Dec. 1941.
1 5 . Information on A V G operations
has been gathered from many fragmen-
tary sources such as cable messages
(British and American), letters, diaries,
interviews, and popular books. No of-
ficial source exists, but it is believed that
the material included here is as accurate
as it has been practicable to make it
without a far more extensive study than
is appropriate for this work.
16. British msg. #Wtooj57, ABDA-
COM (from Wavell) to W a r Office, 26
Jan. 1942; Brit. msg. #DBA 1 1 , CCS to
ABDACOM, 6 Feb. 1942.
17. Brit. msgs. #77801 and #78144,
W a r Office to Brit. Army Staff, Wash-
ington, 2 2 and 24 Mar. 1942; Brit. msg.
#78310, GOC BURMA to Brit. Army
1934, pp. 7-1 I ; Mar.-Apr. 1934, pp. 87-93.

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