Courage and Air Warfare: The Allied Aircrew Experience in the Second World War

Colonel Wells investigates the nature of aerial warfare and the men who took part. The book analyzes aircrew selection, reaction to combat, adaptability to stress, morale, leadership and combat effectiveness. First-hand reflections of combat flyers, published materials, reports and official documents are used to compare the efforts of the US Eighth Air Force and RAF Bomber Command. Although the Allied air effort involved to separate air forces, two different philosophical concepts and two distinct approaches, both organizations were committed to a common goal. Comparing the two allows insights into the nature of air combat and its effects on aviators. Aircrew attitudes and motivations are examined, as are the physical and mental hardships which affected aircrew morale, cohesion and combat effectiveness. The work offers an examination of the sensitive subject of "Lack of Moral Fibre" - the inability to undertake further flights because of stress. The Allied air forces took distinctly different approachesto the diagnosis, treatment and disposal of emotional casualties.