Episode 63 – Airpower: Can It Win Wars?

Can airpower win wars on its own?

After World War II, many believed it could. The destruction of Japanese cities and the atomic bombings seemed to prove that airpower—especially when paired with nuclear weapons—had fundamentally changed warfare. In the early Cold War, this belief placed the Strategic Air Command at the center of U.S. defense policy while the Army and Navy were dramatically reduced in size.

But history quickly complicated that idea.

In Episode 63, Brian and Hope explore the evolution of airpower theory—from Giulio Douhet and Billy Mitchell to John Warden—and examine major case studies including WWII strategic bombing, Korea, Vietnam, Kosovo, and modern conflicts like Ukraine. They also discuss the resilience of civilian populations under air attack, from the Blitz to today.

The episode asks a simple but enduring question: Can airpower compel victory alone, or does war still require control of territory and people?

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