Case Studies in the Achievement of Air Superiority - Air Force ...

BATTLE OF BRITAIN
example of the type of exercise that many military men like to ignore. It
was a victory for the defenders in a struggle in which their objective was
not a battle of attrition to wear down and destroy their opponents, but
their own survival until time could be brought to bear on their side. It was
the classic response of a passive power against an aggressor. But the
defense could have failed for lack of foresight in the lotus years of peace
and during the gift months of the Phoney War when more time than had
been expected was granted. Above all the Battle of Britain pointed to the
need to keep clearly in mind the short-term objective so that the long-term
would remain an option.
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