Air Ministry
The Air Ministry (German: Luft (drive) ministry) was a British ministry that dealt with the affairs of the Royal Air Force .
Predecessor organizations of the Air Ministry
The Air Committee
On April 13, 1912, less than two weeks after the founding of the Royal Flying Corps , the Air Committee was founded as an intermediary between the British Admiralty and the " War Office " (British Ministry of War, forerunner of the current Defense Ministry of the United Kingdom ). This committee was composed of representatives from the two war ministries. It was able to make recommendations but was not authorized to take executive action. The Air Committee's recommendations had to be ratified by the Admiralty Board and the British Imperial General Staff , making the Air Committee not particularly effective. The increasing division between the land and sea-based units of the air force between 1912 and 1914 also had an impact on the ineffectiveness of the Air Committee. After the outbreak of the First World War , no more meetings took place.
The Joint War Air Committee
1916 led the lack of coordination between the Royal Flying Corps of the British Army and the Royal Naval Air Service of the Royal Navy in the procurement of aircraft engines and finally in the air defense of Britain to serious problems. However, it was the supply problems that led to an initial attempt at correction. At a meeting of the War Committee on February 15, 1916, it was decided to set up a joint military committee of the Navy and Army to coordinate the construction of - and the supply of material for the two air forces. Edward Stanley, 17th Earl of Derby , became chairman of this "Joint War Air Committee" . At the February 15th meeting, Lord Curzon proposed the creation of a British Aviation Department. The Joint War Air Committee was also ineffective because of the lack of executive power. After only six meetings, Lord Derby resigned from the chairmanship of this committee.
The Air Board
The next attempt to bring about effective coordination between the two air forces was the establishment of the Air Board. This was created on May 15, 1916 under the chairmanship of Lord Curzon. The involvement of Curzon, a cabinet minister, gave the Air Board a higher status than the Joint War Air Committee. In October 1916, the Air Board published its first report, which was very critical of the handling of the British Air Force. The report mentioned that those in charge in the Army were ready and willing to provide information and attend meetings, while the Navy often absent from meetings and regularly refused to provide information about naval aviation. In January 1917, Lord Cowdray replaced the previous chairman, Lord Curzon.
Establishment of the Air Ministry
Despite some attempts at reorganization by the Air Board, the previous problems could not be solved. The growing number of German air strikes against Great Britain (see Air War # First World War ) worried the public and forced action. The British Prime Minister at the time, David Lloyd George , eventually set up a committee made up of himself and General Jan Christiaan Smuts to investigate the problems of British air defense and the organizational difficulties that the Air Board had to contend with.
On August 17, 1917, General Smuts presented a report to the War Council on the future of the air force. Because of its potential to devastate enemy lands and to destroy industrial centers and living quarters on a large scale, he recommended the creation of a new air force on a par with the Army and Royal Navy . The new air force was to be managed by a new ministry. On November 29, 1917, the royal family approved the "Air Force Bill" and on January 2, 1918 the Air Ministry was founded. Lord Rothermere was appointed British Minister of Aviation.
With the establishment of the Air Ministry, the post of General Director of Military Aviation of the Army Council was abolished.
activity
The Air Ministry issued specifications for new aircraft to British aircraft manufacturers. It then assessed the prototypes and, in the event of an order for series production, gave the aircraft the official name. (see list of Air Ministry specifications )
The " Area Bombing Directive " issued by the Air Ministry in mid-February 1942 during World War II and later heavily disputed was the basis for the area bombing of German cities carried out by the RAF Bomber Command from spring 1942 ( air raid on Lübeck ) - also: aerial warfare in World War II .
resolution
In 1964, the Air Ministry merged with the Admiralty and War Office to form the United Kingdom's Department of Defense .
swell
- ^ British Military Aviation in 1916 ( Memento of March 18, 2007 in the Internet Archive ), Royal Air Force Museum .
- ^ The evolution of an Air Ministry ( Memento of March 15, 2007 in the Internet Archive ), Air of Authority - A History of RAF Organization
- ^ The organization and function of the War Office ( Memento of February 8, 2007 in the Internet Archive ), The Long, Long Trail - The British Army in the Great War of 1914–1918