Dr. Robert Rennie (University of Tennessee- Knoxville): Between Heaven and Hell: The Everyday Experiences of World War I Aviators

         WWI was the first modern war and set the precedent or all wars following.  It was the first war that made use of the aircraft.  This use of technology shrinks the perception of time and space and allows for shorter trip times.  When the armies involved started recruiting for aviators, these men stepped forward from a variety of backgrounds.  When the recruiters asked the men why did they choose aviation, most responded that they were drawn to the new technology and felt a sense of duty or adventure.
         Between 1914-1918 no one saw the usefulness of aircraft's.  Most were used to spot enemy locations behind lines and for reconnaissance.  The second use was in response to the reconnaissance planes flying overhead.  The enemy developed planes to shoot down reconnaissance planes.  Being a pilot in these days was not a glorious as Hollywood makes it out to be.  These planes were extremely weak and poorly built.  In training to fly to the new planes 1/2 of all pilots died in training for the Royal Flying Corps.  This is around 17,000 men that lost their lives due to poorly built planes.  There was no parachute to count on, the equipment was very unreliable, and it took a heavy emotional toll of the pilots.
        The myth of the "Ace" was developed my the aviators and solider's because it gave them hope for immortality and embodied Nationalism.  These historic figures gave a meaning to the war and offered an escape from the meaningless loss of life that was happening all around them.  Enemy pilots when shot down over lines were given full military burials by the people they were trying to bomb or kill.  The aviators perception of death was far more embraced at this time than any other soldier in the war.  This is respect that has been lost in war today.
        Most of the men that survived the war stayed on as the aerial unit for monograph transportation.  Many aviators that could not find a job flying, life seems anti-climatic.  Europe was in shambles, there homes were destroyed, families lost, brothers, colleagues, friends were dead or misplaced.  It took an emotional and economic toll on the aviators of the war and the countries involved.