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7 ways WWI still impacts today's Army
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7 ways WWI still impacts today's Army
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WASHINGTON -- One hundred years after the U.S. entry into World War I, many of the logistics and strategies developed during that era still have an impact on Army operations today -- including the use of the division as a stand-alone unit, the employment of tactical armored vehicles, and the use of aircraft on the battlefield. Here are seven ways that the First World War still influences the Army today.
AIRPOWER
The major European armies possessed airplanes prior to August 1914, but no one believed they would play a major role during World War I. As with most technological advances in wartime, military aircraft proved to be a more vital tool in the war than anyone originally envisioned.
By mid-1915, European combatants sought to produce a new generation of superior warplanes every year. Aircraft development in the United States, however, remained stagnant because of limited funding and the Wright Brothers' efforts to monopolize the U.S aviation industry.
The American Expeditionary Forces Air Service was airborne over the Western Front in early 1918, using French and British planes. The American pilots faced experienced opponents that were equipped with the most capable combat aircraft at that time -- underscoring the necessity for the American forces to develop capable air resources of their own. Today, an entire military service, the Air Force, is dedicated to airpower.
CHEMICAL WEAPONS
Extensive chemical operations had been in place on the Western Front since April 1915, using phosgene, chlorine, and mustard gas. Although the German Army was the first to use chemicals, all nations were soon using chemical weapons.
The United States, however, entered the war unprepared for this particular weapon. The U.S. Army and Marine Corps had to rely on French and British expertise for chemical training, doctrine, and materiel. The Army eventually established a separate Chemical Warfare Service to coordinate the offensive, defensive, and supply problems inherent in chemical weapons.
Gas was responsible over a quarter of all American Expeditionary Forces casualties. While the U.S. military and most militaries no longer use chemical weapons in warfare in accordance with the Geneva Protocol, the Army's modern Chemical Corps still works to protect Soldiers against chemical and biological attacks.
COMMUNICATIONS
Electronic communication made tremendous advancements during World War I. Using transoceanic telegraph wires, American forces in Europe were able to maintain communication with their leaders back home.
American Signal Corps Soldiers built a large-scale communication network in France that included telephone and telegraph lines. In combat zones, telephone lines ran from divisional headquarters to the battalion level, and also between battalions. The Signal Corps used both earth telegraphy and field telephones.
Radio enabled air-to-air and air-to-ground communication for the first time. While much of this technology was initially limited, it created the first real-time communication network within a combat zone.
