Evolution of the War Plane
The First Uses
Soon after the invention of the ‘practical airplane’ people were trying to find the full extent of its abilities, including transport, travel, and warfare. The first planes used in war were sent up for observational purposes, so that one army could see the movements and tactics of the opposing force. This was a life saver for the British at the Battle of Mons, August 23, 1914. The aerial scouts saw the surrounding Germans and managed to warn the field commanders, allowing them to retreat to a better position with minimal causalities.
Early Weapons on Planes
For the scouts flying above the battlefield, it was vital that the plane keep functioning and that it was able to relay that information, so the enemies’ scouts were constantly trying to down planes. None of these first war planes had mounted guns, so often the attacks would be pot-shots at the enemy as you flew by, which often resulted in dead observers or exploding fuselages. The pilots were often shooting at enemy planes using their own weapons, often pistols or rifles. The first mounted weapons on planes were credited to a Frenchman by the name of Roland Garros. He used a standard machine gun that he attached to the nose of his plane, which shot through the propellers to down enemies. The lower portion of the propellers had to be covered with a steel armor plate to prevent the bullets from damaging them.
Fokker and the Mounted Machine Gun
On one of his missions, Garros was shot down and forced to land behind German lines. The Germans forced a local aircraft maker, Anthony Fokker, was ordered to come and re-produce the plane and its weapon, and to have it ready to function and operate within 48 hours. He saw that the French version was crude, requiring that the propellers being coated in steel, which took up resources and added weight. He and his team came up with an alternative solution, synchronizing the spinning props with the machine guns firing rate. This allowed the gun to be fired safely without risk of destroying the front of the plane, so it could be used more effectively.
Testing Fokker’s Mounted Gun
The Germans ordered him to go and shoot down a French plane, to prove the effectiveness of the weapon and system. He went up in the vehicle, according to his account, over 6,000 ft, when he saw a French plane. He dived towards it, but pulled off at the last second because he didn’t see it as his duty to kill the German’s enemies. He landed and told the Germans present to ‘Do their own killings’. A German pilot later accomplished this feat, and orders were issued to outfit all German planes with the new weapons system.
Later Evolutions of the War Plane
As time passed, the success of war planes increased with new weapons and systems being added to them constantly, they can became a true force to be reckoned with. They got better guns, aiming systems, new abilities, and safer functions for the pilots. In WWII, the plane became a vital part of warfare, with pilots such as the ‘Red Baron’ getting 80 kills in air-to-air combat over his short period as a pilot, or the famous bomber planes that could easily decimate enemy buildings and ground forces. Many armies used planes not only as a support role, but as the main part of many operations. This increased with time, as more and more generals experimented with the uses of war planes.
Soon after the invention of the ‘practical airplane’ people were trying to find the full extent of its abilities, including transport, travel, and warfare. The first planes used in war were sent up for observational purposes, so that one army could see the movements and tactics of the opposing force. This was a life saver for the British at the Battle of Mons, August 23, 1914. The aerial scouts saw the surrounding Germans and managed to warn the field commanders, allowing them to retreat to a better position with minimal causalities.
Early Weapons on Planes
For the scouts flying above the battlefield, it was vital that the plane keep functioning and that it was able to relay that information, so the enemies’ scouts were constantly trying to down planes. None of these first war planes had mounted guns, so often the attacks would be pot-shots at the enemy as you flew by, which often resulted in dead observers or exploding fuselages. The pilots were often shooting at enemy planes using their own weapons, often pistols or rifles. The first mounted weapons on planes were credited to a Frenchman by the name of Roland Garros. He used a standard machine gun that he attached to the nose of his plane, which shot through the propellers to down enemies. The lower portion of the propellers had to be covered with a steel armor plate to prevent the bullets from damaging them.
Fokker and the Mounted Machine Gun
On one of his missions, Garros was shot down and forced to land behind German lines. The Germans forced a local aircraft maker, Anthony Fokker, was ordered to come and re-produce the plane and its weapon, and to have it ready to function and operate within 48 hours. He saw that the French version was crude, requiring that the propellers being coated in steel, which took up resources and added weight. He and his team came up with an alternative solution, synchronizing the spinning props with the machine guns firing rate. This allowed the gun to be fired safely without risk of destroying the front of the plane, so it could be used more effectively.
Testing Fokker’s Mounted Gun
The Germans ordered him to go and shoot down a French plane, to prove the effectiveness of the weapon and system. He went up in the vehicle, according to his account, over 6,000 ft, when he saw a French plane. He dived towards it, but pulled off at the last second because he didn’t see it as his duty to kill the German’s enemies. He landed and told the Germans present to ‘Do their own killings’. A German pilot later accomplished this feat, and orders were issued to outfit all German planes with the new weapons system.
Later Evolutions of the War Plane
As time passed, the success of war planes increased with new weapons and systems being added to them constantly, they can became a true force to be reckoned with. They got better guns, aiming systems, new abilities, and safer functions for the pilots. In WWII, the plane became a vital part of warfare, with pilots such as the ‘Red Baron’ getting 80 kills in air-to-air combat over his short period as a pilot, or the famous bomber planes that could easily decimate enemy buildings and ground forces. Many armies used planes not only as a support role, but as the main part of many operations. This increased with time, as more and more generals experimented with the uses of war planes.