[Paul Thompson]

Thank you for sharing your thoughts and the book list, Jim!

Your description suggests that Ted Hooton has addressed the aerial operations side quite extensively, with I presume the usual exception of the fronts other than the Western. It's also great to hear that he has covered air force resources, although I presume that I would need to get a different book to really understand the aircraft industry of the war. May I ask you again for any ideas?

I very much agree with you that the significance of fighter combat is usually exaggerated in all histories of the war. However, you mention that the Entente secured air superiority over the Somme and Verdun. I wonder whether that had a disproportionate significance, since I understand that the Germans were far superior to the Western powers in ground attrition warfare in 1916. So better reconnaissance could have been the straw to break the back of the allied armies and vindicate Falkenhayn's approach to the positional stalemate.

The Martel, Bailey and Duiven books in particular look like ones to read. Although I can see a long search for the first and last of these at a cheaper price! Does anything like the Bailey chronology exist for the Luftstreitkräfte?