A Concise History of the US Air Force - Air Force Historical Studies ...
A Concise History of the US Air Force - Air Force Historical Studies ...
A Concise History of the US Air Force - Air Force Historical Studies ...
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Principal American participants at <strong>the</strong> Casablanca<br />
Conference in French Morocco. Planning meetings on<br />
Allied war strategy between President Roosevelt, Prime<br />
Minister Churchill, and <strong>the</strong> Combined Chiefs <strong>of</strong> Staff<br />
in January 1943 included Lieutenant General Henry<br />
Arnold, Commanding General, <strong>US</strong>AAF. Seated, leji to<br />
right, General George Marshall, President Roosevelt,<br />
and Admiral Ernest King. Standing, left to right, Harry<br />
Hopkins, General Arnold, General Brehon Somervell,<br />
and Averell Harriman.<br />
These initial steps toward organizing air power as an indepen-<br />
dent, unified force also led Army Chief <strong>of</strong> Staff George Marshall to issue<br />
Field Manual 100-20 in 1943. This document, <strong>the</strong> <strong>US</strong>AAF’s “declaration<br />
<strong>of</strong> independence,” recognized “land power and air power” to be “coequal<br />
and interdependent forces.” In <strong>the</strong> Mediterranean, <strong>the</strong> Twelfth <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Force</strong><br />
neutralized <strong>the</strong> Lufcwaffe when Allied forces invaded Sicily in July and<br />
<strong>the</strong> Italian peninsula in September. Tough fighting slowed Lieutenant<br />
General Mark Clark’s forces as <strong>the</strong>y pushed northward, forcing him to<br />
rely increasingly on <strong>US</strong> AAF assistance to break through German lines.<br />
Since <strong>the</strong> bombing <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> abbey at Monte Cassino failed to break <strong>the</strong><br />
stalemate on <strong>the</strong> ground, <strong>US</strong> AAF units focused <strong>the</strong>ir attention on inter-<br />
diction. Operation STRANGLE hoped to cut <strong>the</strong> flow <strong>of</strong> supplies to<br />
German defenders in Italy. The Twelfth <strong>Air</strong> <strong>Force</strong> learned how difficult<br />
that could be. Downing bridges, strafing trains and trucks, and bombing<br />
supply dumps contributed to eventual victory in 1945, but <strong>the</strong> protection<br />
<strong>of</strong> darkness gave <strong>the</strong> enemy opportunities to supply its forces.<br />
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