European Theater Recognition Guide Part I - Aircraft; DIAM 57-25-130
Largely Air Force Base, Virginia: Headquarters United States Air Force, 1987. Presumed First Edition, First printing. Wraps. Format is approximately 8 inches by 6 inches. x, 346 pages. Illustrations (photographs and diagrams). Two staples and two-hole punched on left side. Minor cover wear noted. The purpose of this guide is to provide users with a readily available pictorial guide of major aircraft operation in the European Theater. Recognition Guides were also going to be produced on major ground and naval weapon systems. Use of these guides was intended to provide general recognition information on all major weapon systems in the theater. In instances were there was a major recognition difference between the basic model and a variant, both systems are shown. Included in this manual was the best unclassified photography available at the time of publication. While unclassified, at the time of publication, the information was for official use within the U.S. Government and distribution was limited to U.S. Government Agencies. Other users needed to submit requests to the Defense Intelligence Agency, Foreign Disclosure Branch. The 480th Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance Wing (480th ISR Wing) is headquartered at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia. The 480th ISR Wing leads Air Force globally networked ISR operations. The wing operates and maintains the Air Force Distributed Common Ground System (DCGS), also known as the AN/GSQ-272 "Sentinel" weapon system, conducting imagery, cryptologic, and measurement and signatures intelligence activities. The unit processes twenty terabytes of data each day. The 480th ISR Wing employs more than 6,000 civilian and military personnel, and operates and manages over $5 billion of intelligence resources. The 27th Intelligence Squadron is assigned directly to the wing and provides communication and network services. Tests and evaluates emerging information technologies and handles all aspects of the 480th ISR Wing security program.
Aircraft recognition is a visual skill taught to military personnel and civilian auxiliaries since the introduction of military aircraft in World War I. It is important for air defense and military intelligence gathering. Aircraft recognition generally depends on learning the external appearance of the aircraft, both friendly and hostile, most likely to be encountered. Techniques used to teach this information have included military manuals, scale models, printed silhouette charts, slide projectors, computer aided instruction and even specially-printed playing cards.
In the United Kingdom, The Royal Observer Corps (ROC) was formed as a defense warning organization with civilians trained in aircraft recognition and operated primarily as such between 1925 and 1957. Aircraft recognition was first developed between the First and Second World wars when aerial warfare was first recognized as a future threat, after 208 Zeppelin and 435 aircraft raids over London during the First World War. To answer this new threat, Major General Edward Bailey Ashmore, a First World War pilot who had later been in command of an artillery division in Belgium, was appointed to devise improved systems of detection, communication and control. The Metropolitan Observation Service was created, covering the London area, known as the London Air Defense Area, and was soon extended to the coasts of Kent and Essex. This led to the establishment of the Observer Corps in 1925.
It was the belief of the British War Department and the Air Ministry, at the start of the war, that accurate recognition of high-flying and fast-moving aircraft was not possible. The volunteers of the Observer Corps disagreed and between 1938 and 1939 they started developing the skills and training materials to achieve it. Local units began to band together and form spotting clubs that eventually combined in April 1941 as The Royal Observer Corps Club and prepared early aircraft type silhouette cards for both allied and German types, mostly made by tracing photographs from The Aeroplane magazine, with some made by enlarging silhouettes from commercially produced 1930s cigarette card sets. Technical editor of The Aeroplane, Peter Masefield, who was also a member of the Corps, traveled the length of Britain giving lectures and training sessions. The WEFT (Wingshape, Engine configuration, Fuselage shape and Tail type) system of recognition was first developed by Chief Observer C.H. Gibbs-Smith of Watford Group's Delta 3 post and a member of Hearker Club No. 3.
In the US during World War II, civilians were enlisted into a Ground Observer Corps to support air defense operations, receiving training in aircraft identification. The US military continues to use "WEFT" as a mnemonic for the major features of an aircraft: Wings or rotors to provide lift, Engines to provide power, a Fuselage to carry the payload and pilot, and a Tail assembly which controls the direction of flight. These elements differ in shape, size, number, and position. The differences distinguish one aircraft type from another. The individual components can be taught as separate recognition and identification features, but it is the composite of these features that must be learned to recognize and identify an aircraft. Condition: Very good.
Keywords: Aircraft, European Theater, Military Manual, Recognition Guide, Aircraft, Fighters, Bombers, Transports, Special Purpose Aircraft, and Helicopters, Defense Intelligence Agency, DIAM 57-24-130
[Book #79518]
Price: $35.00