The classical airpower theorists promoted air forces as a revolutionary new combat arm capable of destroying the moral resistance of the enemy. Speaking about the effects of aerial bombardment, Giulio Douhet said, "A complete breakdown of the social structure cannot but take place in a country subjected to this kind of merciless pounding from the air. The time would soon come when, driven by the instinct of self-preservation, would rise up and demand an end to the war."[1] Douhet and others focused on crushing the enemy's will to fight through direct attack on civilian populations. These early theorists developed their ideas in the aftermath of WWI, when operations were not constrained over fears of collateral damage or force protection. Leading up to WWII, American airpower theorists expanded strategic air attack to include destroying the opponent's material war making capacity. During WWII and the Cold War, airpower's primary mission was touted as strategic bombing with two intertwined targets: military-economic capacity and civilian populations. This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work. This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.