AT THE DAWN OF AIRPOWER Titles in the Series Airpower Reborn: The Strategic Concepts of John Warden and John Boyd The Bridge to Airpower: Logistics Support for Royal Flying Corps Operations on the Western Front, 1914–18 Airpower Applied: U.S., NATO, and Israeli Combat Experience The Origins of American Strategic Bombing Theory Beyond the Beach: The Allied Air War against France “The Man Who Took the Rap”: Sir Robert Brooke-Popham and the Fall of Singapore Flight Risk: The Coalition’s Air Advisory Mission in Afghanistan, 2005–2015 Winning Armageddon: Curtis LeMay and Strategic Air Command, 1948–1957 Rear Admiral Herbert V. Wiley: A Career in Airships and Battleships From Kites to Cold War: The Evolution of Manned Airborne Reconnaissance Airpower over Gallipoli, 1915–1916 Selling Schweinfurt: Targeting, Assessment, and Marketing in the Air Campaign against German Industry Airpower in the War against ISIS To Rule the Skies: General Thomas S. Power and the Rise of Strategic Air Command in the Cold War Rise of the War Machines: The Birth of Precision Bombing in World War II The History of Military Aviation Paul J. Springer, editor This series is designed to explore previously ignored facets of the history of airpower. It includes a wide variety of disciplinary approaches, scholarly perspectives, and argumentative styles. Its fundamental goal is to analyze the past, present, and potential future utility of airpower and to enhance our understanding of the changing roles played by aerial assets in the for- mulation and execution of national military strategies. It encompasses the incredibly diverse roles played by airpower, which include but are not limited to efforts to achieve air superiority; strategic attack; intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions; airlift operations; close-air support; and more. Of course, airpower does not exist in a vacuum. There are myriad terrestrial support operations required to make airpower func- tional, and examination of these missions is also a goal of this series. In less than a century, airpower developed from flights measured in minutes to the ability to circumnavigate the globe without landing. Air- power has become the military tool of choice for rapid responses to enemy activity, the primary deterrent to aggression by peer competitors, and a key enabler to military missions on the land and sea. This series provides an opportunity to examine many of the key issues associated with its usage in the past and present, and to influence its development for the future. AT THE DAWN OF AIRPOWER THE U.S. ARMY, NAVY, AND MARINE CORPS’ APPROACH TO THE AIRPLANE, 1907–1917 BY LAURENCE M. BURKE II Naval Institute Press • Annapolis, Maryland Naval Institute Press 291 Wood Road Annapolis, MD 21402 © 2022 by The Smithsonian Institution and Laurence M. Burke II All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Burke, Laurence M., II, 1969- author. Title: At the dawn of airpower : the U.S Army, Navy, and Marine Corps’ approach to the airplane, 1907-1917 / by Laurence Mitchell Burke II. Other titles: U.S Army, Navy, and Marine Corps’ approach to the airplane, 1907-1917 Description: Annapolis, Maryland : Naval Institute Press, [2022] | Series: The history of military aviation | Includes bibliographical references and index. Identifiers: LCCN 2021059325 (print) | LCCN 2021059326 (ebook) | ISBN 9781682477298 (hardcover) | ISBN 9781682477502 (ebook) Subjects: LCSH: Aeronautics, Military—United States—History—20th century. | Naval aviation—United States—History—20th century. | BISAC: HISTORY / Military / Aviation | HISTORY / Military / United States Classification: LCC UG633 .B845 2022 (print) | LCC UG633 (ebook) | DDC 358.400973--dc23/eng/20220118 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021059325 LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021059326 ∞ Print editions meet the requirements of ANSI/NISO z39.48-1992 (Permanence of Paper). Printed in the United States of America. 30 29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 First printing This book is dedicated to the memory of my late wife, who would have been thrilled that I have a book in print. Contents Acknowledgments xi List of Abbreviations xiii Prologue xvii Introduction 1 1 Army 1907–1910: The Army Gets a Plane 11 2 Navy/Marines 1909–1912: The Origins 35 of Naval Aviation 3 Army 1911–1912: More Pilots, More Planes 57 4 Navy/Marines 1912–1913: Return to Annapolis 82 and the Beginnings of Marine Corps Aviation 5 Interservice Organization I: Finding Common Interests 1 01 6 Army 1912–1914: A Permanent School and a 113 Move Toward Operational Status 7 Navy/Marines 1914–1917: Reorganization and 151 Disruption in Naval Aviation 8 Army 1915–1917: The European War, Scandal, 187 and a Deployment 9 Interservice Organization II: Joint Boards 227 Conclusion 247 Notes 261 Sources Cited 316 Index 325 xi