Disarmament and airpower, 1932–1934: Clipping the bomber's wings

Abstract

From 1932 to 1934, the Geneva disarmament conference held the future of airpower in its hands. Not only was a ban on aerial bombardment considered, but the entire future of military aviation came into question. British officials were amongst the foremost advocates of total aerial disarmament, spelling the effective end of the RAF. In addition to the fear of bombing of British cities, airpower was not Britain's military strong‐point. There were however, stumbling‐blocks in the way for complete disarmament, which in the end were to save the future of the RAF. The development of military aviation could not be restrained while the civil aircraft industry developed unimpeded. Meanwhile the French were increasingly concerned with developments in Germany where with the coming to power of Hitler rearmament ather that disarmament was the order of the day. Colonel Meilinger here argues that there are clear parallels between the trials of the airmen of the 1930s and the situation in the post‐Cold War era. We are currently grappling with the problems of shrinking defence bedgets. The airmen of today must learn from the near‐debacle which occurred in Geneva in the early 1930s, otherwise the bomber's wings may indeed be clipped.