Historical Perspective: Emergence and Prominence of Air Defence

The use of aircraft for military purposes was limited in the earlier wars, but World War II brought the aircraft to the fore as the main weapon platform. Since the potential of the aircraft was well known, most of the nations had started working on technologies to counter this threat. The development of the radar to detect the aircraft, along with ground-based weapons to destroy raiding aircraft and aerial tactics by the fighter aircraft to destroy the bomber aircraft, were some of the most important developments that impacted warfare in general, and aerial warfare in particular during World War II. The strategies, tactics and technologies that evolved during the period shaped Air Defence (AD) as we know it today. Most of the content of this chapter is from a well-researched paper on the subject by the author published in the Air Power Journal , by the Centre for Air Power Studies (CAPS). 1