ve weapon began to be realized. Bombing was done, but it was of a
desultory nature, and although the number of machines engaged in this
work steadily increased, and the work itself became more and more
diversified and specialized, it was not until 1918 that the
possibilities of the aeroplane as a purely offensive weapon were
appreciated.

An aeroplane can operate far back of the enemy lines, both in the day
and at night; enemy troops in transport can be bombed: railway stations,
sidings, etc., damaged; transports of all kinds delayed; and ammunition
dumps, when located, can be blown up. In fact, military targets of all
sorts can be attacked from the air that cannot be reached in any other
way. The very foundation of a nation's strength in war, its industry,
can be attacked from the air and, if attacked on a large enough scale,
can be destroyed. For instance, eighty per cent of the German steel
industry was within bombing range of the Allies. The Westphalian group
of high-grade steel industries centred at Essen is about two hundred
miles from Nancy. If this group had been bombed on a large scale the
source of supply of German guns and munitions could have been destroyed;
for a blast furnace destroyed cannot be replaced within nine months, and
the destruction of the central electrical plant of a steel factory would
place the entire factory out of operation for at least six months. The
hundreds of bombing machines which the English aeroplane factories were
turning out at the time hostilities ceased, and the thousands of men
being trained for bombing, make one wonder what would have happened to
the German industries if the war had continued through the spring of
1919.

Besides these hundreds of aeroplanes under construction and the
thousands of men in training, the Royal Air Force had in operation,
November 11, 1918, over twenty thousand aeroplanes, over thirty thousand
aviators, and over two hundred thousand mechanics and other personnel.

CHAPTER II

THE "BEDOUIN" SQUADRON

The "Bedouin" Squadron, so called because as a unit it was constantly
moved from place to place, and because its members as individuals were
wanderers at heart, was formed in September, 1917, equipped with the
large Handley-Page bombing planes, and sent to the Nancy front to carry
out pioneer work in long-distance bombing. The "Bedouins," as the
officers of this squadron were called, first saw the light of day in
England, Scotland, Irelan