Histories often devote extensive space to both world wars while compressing the decades that connected their technologies and doctrine. That compression can make mature Second World War practices seem to have appeared suddenly. The idea of an enduring airborne lookout already existed during the First World War as a way to find Zeppelins and frustrate enemy reconnaissance. Interwar fleet spotters then developed the concept through longer endurance, dedicated observers, and routine cooperation with fighters.
Chapter · 55:10-58:06
Interwar aviation connected First World War ideas to 1939
Fleet spotting and airborne lookout concepts evolved across the neglected interwar years instead of appearing suddenly in the Second World War.