THE WINGS OF THE GREAT WAR - THE GREAT AIRCOLLECTION

In France, the military experimented with aeroplanes as early as the Manoeuvres of Picardy at the end of 1910. They realised the usefulness of "lighting" by air. In addition to captive observation balloons, which all the belligerents would use massively, the "fifth weapon" would be used to identify the intentions of the adversary and to regulate artillery fire. At the outbreak of hostilities, aerial bombardment, which strategists believe to be the prerogative of airships (the only ones capable of embarking large shipments over long distances - with their Zeppelins, the Germans will inaugurate terror raids on cities) is also practiced, albeit timidly, with aircraft. Initially carried out by isolated aircraft carrying small loads, as the Great War progressed, these missions would see increasingly compact formations of better motorised machines bringing death to the front and rear... On 5 October 1914, it was aboard a Voisin that the Frantz and Quenault crew won the first air victory at the expense of an Aviatik. The specialization of fighter aviation was to be affirmed during the Battle of Verdun, when General Pétain asked the Aéronautique Militaire to "sweep the skies of German aircraft". At sea too, the specificities of naval combat led seaplanes, from coastal bases or even ships, to operate for rescue, exploration and protection of convoys or bombing and even hunting. The First World War proved to be a powerful accelerator of progress for aviation. With peace restored, it will be ready to conquer the planet!