WW1 - War In The Air Flashcards

1
Q

When were observation balloons first used in warfare

A

1794

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2
Q

Why were Ariel balloons used in warfare throughout the 19th century

A

Reconnaissance

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3
Q

From what year did the Royal engineers had a balloon section

A

1890

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4
Q

When did the wright brothers develop he first aeroplane

A

1903

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5
Q

Did the military hold a progressive attitude towards planes in 1903

A

No they were slow to appreciate the potential of the aeroplane as a weapon.

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6
Q

When did the US procure its first wright plane

A

1909

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7
Q

In what year did the US experiment with bomb-drops

A

1910

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8
Q

When did the french make a trail reconnaissance flight using a Farman aircraft

A

1910

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9
Q

When did the Italians carry out its first operational air reconnaissance

A

October 1911 (during their war with turkey)

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10
Q

When was the Royal flying corps founded

A

April 1912

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11
Q

When was the Royal naval air service founded

A

July 1914

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12
Q

What was the purpose of aircrafts at the start of the war

A

Aircrafts were used as “scouts” for reconnaissance

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13
Q

How fast were aircrafts in 1914

A

Around 70 mph

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14
Q

What were the first aircrafts made of

A

Light wood and fabric

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15
Q

At the start of WW1, how many aeroplanes did Britain have

A

100

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16
Q

How many were employed in the aircraft industry by 1918 in Britain

A

350,000 workers

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17
Q

What was the first city bombing by air

A

When the Germans bombed Paris on the 30th August 1914

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18
Q

When did the first German bomb hit Britain

A

December 1914

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19
Q

What were the aircrafts used by the Germans in city bombing runs

A

The zeppelin airship and gotha bombing planes

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20
Q

When did London first suffer from city bombing

A

1917

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21
Q

What did England introduce to tackle the threat from the air

A

Anti-aircraft Defense (AA guns)

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22
Q

At the start of the war, how were aircrafts weaponised

A

Pilots had a pistol

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23
Q

How big were the bombs that planes dropped following the air revolution

A

1000 pounds

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24
Q

What was the first independent airforce in the world

A

The Royal Air Force

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25
Q

When was the RAF established

A

1918

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26
Q

What was the propaganda role of the airforce

A

Fighter pilot “aces” were hailed as heroic “knights of the air” despite it being no more violent than trench warfare

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27
Q

How had air supremacy in 1918

A

The allies

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28
Q

Who would traditionally gathers intelligence about the enemy army

A

Scouts and spies

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29
Q

What was the traditional way that the navy conducted reconnaissance

A

Used fast ships to locate and the. “Shadow” the enemy fleet

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30
Q

What was the first war that Britain used reconnaissance ballons

A

The second boer war

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31
Q

When were airships invented

A

The 1850’s

32
Q

Who flew the first German airship in 1900

A

Ferdinand Von zeppelin

33
Q

In what year did the German army acquire its first zeppelin

A

1906

34
Q

What was the name of the first British airship

A

Beta 1

35
Q

When did the British army get the beta 1

A

1910

36
Q

What did the British army chose to use over airship as they found them to be more useful in the battlefield

A

Kite balloon

37
Q

How many feet could kite balloons ascend

A

4,000 feet

38
Q

How many miles was it possible to observe in a kite balloon

A

15 miles

39
Q

How were kite balloons defended

A

AA guns

40
Q

What made kite balloons had to shoot down

A

Bullets could pass through the fabric without igniting the gas inside

41
Q

What invention made kite balloons vulnerable to attack

A

Incendiary ammunition

They would set fire to the kite balloons

42
Q

What was the ratio of British balloons to German balloons

A

15 to 1

43
Q

How effective were kite balloons in battle reconnaissance

A

Incredibly effective, the Germans complained they could pick out individual soldiers or machine gun posts and order artillery

44
Q

What was the first purpose of the Royal fling corps squadrons in 1914

A

To support the army by scouting and artillery spotting

45
Q

When was the first royal flying corps reconnaissance mission

A

19th August 1914

46
Q

Who flew the first RFC recon mission

A

Gilbert Mapplebeck and Phillip Joubert

47
Q

What happens to captain Mappleback on the ford RFC recon mission

A

He got lost and had to land near Cambrai and ask for directions

48
Q

What was the impact of mappleback getting lost

A

It fuelled scepticism around aeronautics in wars

49
Q

How did mappleback die in 1915

A

Testing a new aircraft

50
Q

How old was mappleback when he died

A

23

51
Q

What were the first military aircrafts called

A

Scouts

52
Q

What date was avro 504 scout of the 5th squadron shit down by German rifle fire over Belgium

A

22 August 1914

53
Q

What was the problem with aerial reconnaissance from aircraft

A

It was difficult since pilots could not identify accurately soldiers and trenches below

54
Q

Why were Union Kacks painted on the bottom of allied aircrafts

A

Often British soldiers shot down British planes as they were unaware who was the enemy and who was RFC

this distinguished British and french aircrafts from German whi adopted a black cross insignia

55
Q

When was the RFCs wireless flight first operational in France

A

September 1914

56
Q

How many pounds was the first airborne radio transmitter

A

72 pounds

57
Q

What replaced the first bulky radio transmitters in 1915

A

The sterling lightweight set (under 20 pounds)

58
Q

What was the impact of the radio planes on the enemy

A

They became apprehensive to open fire on them as British planes would quickly respond in their Defense

59
Q

What was the role of aircraft in artillery

A

They could see the target that the gunner couldn’t see and tell them how to correct their aim

60
Q

How did aircrafts signal where the enemy artillery positions were

A

They dropped ribbons and circled above

61
Q

What’s artillery spitting system was set up in 1915

A

The zone call system

62
Q

What was the zone call system

A

Pilots sent out target information by radio in morse code to RFC signallers who were assigned to artillery batteries

63
Q

By may 1916, how many British aircraft were using the wireless zone call system

A

300 British aircraft

64
Q

By may 1916, how many ground stations were their in the zone call system

A

550 ground stations

65
Q

What was the downside of the zone call system

A

The wireless air elks were easily destroyed and ground operators were descended by loud artillery shelling

66
Q

Who experimented with air photography in 1912

A

Fredrick laws

67
Q

Was airplanes or balloons better for air photography

A

Easier from balloons but the aeroplanes mobility made it invaluable

68
Q

What role did sir photographs play in intelligence of the enemy

A

Photos were assembled into mosaic maps of the German lines allowing for detailed maps of German trenches and battle fronts

69
Q

What was the first battle which planes provided air intelligence

A

The Somme offences in 1916

70
Q

How many photos did the RFC produce over the battle of the Somme

A

19,000

71
Q

How many prints did the RFC produce if the battle of the Somme

A

430,000 prints

72
Q

As a result of air reconnaissance, what unit did the french establish in 1915

A

The first camouflage unit

73
Q

What does “camouflage” actually mean

A

To make up for the stage

74
Q

When did Britain set up its first camouflage unit

A

1916

75
Q

What was the name of the first British camouflage unit

A

Special works park

76
Q

What truck did the camouflage unit use to fool snipers

A

Fake trees concealing an observer or gunner

77
Q

In March 1915, how many scout planes did the RFC have

A

85 aircraft in France