In combat from December 20 1941 until June 1942, they claimed 286 Japanese aircraft for 23 losses. Some AVG personnel subsequently joined Chennault’s Fourteenth Air Force, sometimes also referred to as the “Flying Tigers”.
Allied supremo in 1918: Marshal Foch
Foch, Marshal Ferdinand (18511929). Fr. An artillery officer, Foch was Chief Instructor at the Ecole Superieure de Guerre from 1896 to 1901 and Commandant from 1908 to 1911. As the leading advocate of the offensive, he helped to shape French military doctrine before World War I and must bear much of the blame for the wasteful tactics of 1914—15. In August 1914 he commanded XX Corps in Lorraine and, the following month, led the Ninth Army on the Marne, where his obsessive reliance on offensive tactics proved costly to his own troops. Nevertheless, Joffre was sufficiently impressed to make Foch his deputy in October and put him in command of the Northern Army Group, with the task of coordinating the Allied forces between the Oise and the North Sea. Foch’s resolute and energetic leadership during the autumn battles in Flanders was an important factor in enabling the Allies to prevent a German breakthrough and provided him with valuable experience in inter-Allied command. On the other hand, his miserly use of French reserves and his reluctance to withdraw to a more defensible line caused unnecessary problems during the Second Battle of Ypres in 1915. The failures in Artois that year at last persuaded Foch to revise his tactical ideas and place greater emphasis on thorough preparation and artillery superiority in future operations. In 1916 he was pessimistic about the prospects of the Somme offensive, in which the French played a subordinate role. With Joffre’s removal in December, Foch’s career too went into temporary eclipse until May 1917, when he was appointed CGS. Then on March 26 1918, at the height of the German offensive in Picardy, Foch was made responsible for coordinating all Allied operations on the Western Front. His powers were extended when he was named General-inChief of the Allied Armies on April 14. In this capacity he led the Allies to victory. Although Haig and Pershing continued to exercise a great deal of independence, Foch’s overall strategy of keeping the Germans off balance by striking alternate blows at different points on the Western Front certainly contributed to the final Allied success. PJS.
Focke-Wulf Fw 189 Uhu (Owl)
(German, WWII). Tactical reconnaissance; crew 3. Originally intended as light bomber/ground attack aircraft; prototype flew July 1938; production started 1939; deliveries from late 1940. Much used on reconnaissance/close-support duties Russian front; also in Finland and North Africa. Vulnerable to fighter attack, progressively transferred to liaison and ambulance work. Total production 846. Two 465hp Argus As 410A-1 engines; max. speed 214mph (342kph); four 7.92mm machine
< guns, 4401b (200kg) bombs.
Focke-Wulf Fw 190/Ta 152 (German, WWII). Single-seat fighter. Prototype first flew June 1 1939; deliveries of evaluation batch early winter 1940, of production aircraft end 1940. With increased armament, later Fw 190s proved to be potent fighters; design developed through numerous subtypes to the Ta 152 series, 1943 and later. Production total over 19,700, all variants. One l,700hp BMW 801D-2 or l,750hp Junkers Jumo 213E engine; max. speed 382/472mph (615/760kph); four
20mm cannon and two 7.92mm machine guns/one 30mm and two 20mm cannon.
Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condor (German, WWII). Long-range maritime reconnaissance bomber; crew 6. Adaptation of civil transport;
First few conversions operating late 1939; attacks on British shipping began 1940. Production Fw 200C-ls came forward that year; deliveries slow, but Condor proved effective until introduction into Allied convoy operations of cam-ship Hurricanes. Late versions carried guided missiles. Production totalled 276. Four l,200hp BMW Bramo 323R-2 Fafnir engines; max. speed 224mph (358kph); 4,6201b (2,095kg) bombs, one 20mm and one 15mm cannon, four 13mm and one 7.92mm machine guns; missile-carrying versions, two Hs 293 radio-controlled glider bombs.
Fokker D VII (German, WWI). Single-seat fighter. Prototype (Fokker Vll) flew December 1917; won official fighter competition January/February 1918. Production deliveries began February 1918; at least 48 Jagdstaffeln equipped, partly or wholly, with D VII. Formidable and successful; best with BMW engine. Front-line strength at August 31 1918, total 828. One 160/175hp Mercedes D III/D Ilia or 185hp BMW Ilia engine; max. speed 125mph (200kph); two 7.Wm machine guns.
Fokker Dr I (German, WWI). Single-seat fighter triplane. Prototypes flew acceptance tests August 16 1917; both to operational units August 21. Production deliveries to Jagdstaffeln from October. An aircraft of exceptional manoeuvrability; proved elusive in combat in skilled hands, but had serious limitations. Production 320. One llOhp Oberursel Ur II(Rh) engine; max. speed 115mph (184kph); two 7.9mm machine guns.
Fokker monoplane (German, WWI). Single-seat fighter. Basic design (Fokker M.5K) flew April 1914; experiments with mechanical interrupter gear for fixed machine gun led to Fok. E I, spring 1915. This was a significant new weapon; development led to Fok. E II (July 1915), E III (August 1915) and twin-gun E IV (November 1915). Production about 450. One 80/100/160hp Oberursel engine; max. speed (E IV) lOOmph (160kph); one 7.9mm machine gun (two on E IV).
World History
