The Strategic Air War Against Germany, 1939-1945: Report of the British Bombing Survey UnitAt the close of the Second World War both the RAF and the United States Army Air Forces sent teams of investigators to the continent of Europe to try and assess the effectiveness of Allied strategic bombing. The British Survey was originally classified and is published here for the first time. By combining the original Report and an analysis of its strengths and weaknesses, together with a short history of the genesis of the British Survey, this work is an important contribution to the continuing historical debate over the effects of the strategic bombing offensive in the Second World War. |
Contents
List of Illustrations vii | |
PART | i |
BOMBING POLICIES AND DIRECTIFS | lvi |
Chapter | 6 |
The Scale and Distribution of the Bomber Effort | 31 |
TABLE | 33 |
TABLE | 37 |
Chapter 8 | 40 |
TABLE 43 | 56 |
The Effects of the Combined Bomber Offensive | 63 |
TABLE 44 | 72 |
TABLE 45 | 100 |
TABLE 46 | 139 |
Achievements and Possibilities of Strategic Air War | 159 |
Glossary of Code Names and Abbreviations | 173 |
TABLE 47 | 177 |
Common terms and phrases
3rd quarter achieved air attacks Air Ministry Air Staff aircraft industry aircraft production Allied American APR-JUN area attacks armament production armies attacks on railway average BBSU bomber effort bomber forces bomber offensive bridges cent civilian coal communications D-Day damage defences destruction directif economic effects enemy enemy's estimated fact factories fighter figures France fuel German aircraft German oil Germany's heavy bombers increase INDEX OF GERMAN JAN-MAR January JUL-SEP July June labour force loss Luftwaffe March military million months Oboe OCT-DEC oil plants oil targets operations output overall PERCENTAGE period priority programme R.A.F. Bomber Command raids rail railway centres railway system Reich Report result Royal Air Force Ruhr September SHAEF short tons shortage Speer steel strategic air forces Strategic Bombing Survey supplies synthetic oil Table tactical target systems Tonnage tons of bombs towns traffic trains transport U-boat United Kingdom USSBS VIIIth U.S.A.A.F. waggons weapons Wehrmacht western XVth