Aeroplanes and Dirigibles of War
Frederick A. Talbot



PREFACE

Ever since the earliest days of the great conquest of the air,
first by the dirigible balloon and then by the aeroplane, their
use in time of war has been a fruitful theme for discussion. But
their arrival was of too recent a date, their many utilities too
unexplored to provide anything other than theories, many
obviously untenable, others avowedly problematical.

Yet the part airships have played in the Greatest War has come as
a surprise even to their most convinced advocates. For every
expectation shattered, they have shown a more than compensating
possibility of usefulness.

In this volume an endeavour has been made to record their
achievements, under the stern test of trial, as an axiom of war,
and to explain, in untechnical language, the many services to
which they have been and may be applied.

In the preparation of the work I have received assistance from
many sources--British, French, Russian and German--from official
reports and from men who have played a part in the War in the
Air. The information concerning German military aircraft has
been obtained from Government documents, most of which were
placed at my disposal before the outbreak of war.