France had been exhausted by the First World War, and the economic resources and political will were lacking to spend money on military equipment in the 1920s and early 1930s. By the mid-1930s, when the threat from Germany became obvious, the French military and aircraft industry were in a very poor state. Rapid modernisation would prove to be too little, too late.
The Armée de L’Air was formed from the Aéronautique Militaire as an independent air arm in 1934, but it continued to suffer from doctrinal, political and economic problems. Rapid changes in government created little continuity in policy and priorities, leading to problems with funding. Corners were cut with the use of multi-role aircraft intended for adaptation to a range of different capabilities, although inevitably such aircraft became a mess of compromises and fell short in all tasks. Only in 1936 did the need to rearm spark development of effective modern aircraft, in particular fighters, such as the Morane Saulnier MS406 and Dewoitine D520. Even then the tendency was to cut corners, with aircraft like the Potez 630 twin-engined fighter being built with one eye on producing bomber and reconnaissance variants.
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هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة Issue 121 من History of War.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
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COUPS & CHAOS
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THE RISE OF ALGERIAN RESISTANCE
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ROOTS OF REVOLUTION
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Phillips O’Brien discusses how this quintet of national leaders impacted the course of the Second World War
Great Battles FLODDEN
On the morning of 9 September 1513, King James lV of Scotland stood atop Flodden Hill with what seemed an insurmountable advantage over the English. Yet by the day's end he would lay slain and his army shattered
FERDINAND 'THE BLOODY'
Known for his brutal martial punishment and execution of his own men, Ferdinand Schérner’s ruthlessness was matched only by his devotion to Nazi ideology
AIRBORNE UNDER SIEGE ARNHEM
For nine days the heroic 1st Airborne fought desperately, waiting vainly for relief that never came
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