Airpower in Small Wars: Fighting Insurgents and Terrorists

The use of airpower in wartime calls to mind the massive bombings of World War II, but aeroplanes have long been instrumental in small wars as well. Ever since its use by the French to put down rebellious Moroccan tribes in 1913, air power has been employed to fight in limited but often lengthy small conflicts around the globe. This volume presents a comprehensive history of airpower in small wars - conflicts pitting states against non-state groups such as insurgents, bandits, factions and terrorists - tracing it from the early years of the 20th century to the present day. It examines dozens of conflicts with strikingly different scenarios, inluding: the Greek Civil War, the Philippine Anti-Huk campaign, French and British colonial wars, the war in South Vietnam before the American escalation, and counter-insurgency and counter-terrorist campaigns in the Middle East.