The bombing WAR

Air warfare had improved dramatically since the First World War but the shortage of fighter pilots almost had tragic consequences

BThe ethics of bombing became an issue right from the start. Under the terms of the Hague Convention, to which Britain was a signatory, non combatants should not be targeted. The problem was that bombs were not a very discriminating weapon. At No. 8 FTS Montrose, both fighter and bomber pilots were given advanced training but on different types of aircraft. Wing Commander Tom Neil, who joined No. 15 Course in 1939, described how the vital decision was made. “We were all lined up and the chief flying instructor and his entourage went down the line asking each man their preference.” He reached Jock Nicol, a fiery little Scotsman “Do you want to fly fighters or bombers?” “Fighters Sir, ahm nae prepared tae bomb innocent wummen and children”. There was a deathly hush as the CFI drew himself up to his considerable full height. “You will bomb innocent women and children and like it. Bombers”. Less than a year later Jock Nicol was killed flying a Hampden bomber over Germany.

“Ahm nae prepared tae bomb innocent wummen and children...” ombing from the air was first used during the First World War when it was seen as a kind of long range artillery, directed at military targets behind the front line. The Germans used huge airships, Zeppelins, to attack British cities. The first civilian casualties in Scotland were killed by a Zeppelin bomb which hit Edinburgh in 1916. Later in the war, German long range aircraft attacked London. Casualties were light by later standards but perceptive observers saw this was the shape of things to come. Civilians would be in the frontline in future wars. The creation of the RAF as an independent force in 1918 was a direct result of panic about enemy bombing. The leaders of the recently formed RAF looked for ways to enhance the importance of the service and make it the equal of the older services. By the 1930s the idea had taken hold that bombing by itself would be a decisive weapon of war by destroying enemy industry and the morale of the enemy population. There could be no effective defence. The bomber would always get through. In 1936 the RAF was restructured into functional commands. Bomber Command was the air marshals’ favourite. Only bombers could win a war, so priority was given to them. From its re-opening in January 1936 to May 1940, a majority of pilots from No. 8 Flying Training School went into Bomber Command. Fighter Command was only a defensive weapon. Shortage of fighter pilots almost caused Fighter Command to lose the Battle of Britain.