| This study examines Ira C. Eaker's role in turning the theory of daylight precision bombing into reality during World War II. This theory argued that America's heavily armed bombers, flying at high altitudes in tight formations, could penetrate far into enemy airspace to bomb armament industry targets, destroying the enemy's ability to wage war (as opposed to area night bombing, which indiscriminately targeted civilian population centers). Commanding the earliest American unit to see combat in the European Theater, Eaker was tasked with implementing daylight precision bombing---the first commander on a large scale to do so.; Eaker had the thankless job of sending young men of the Eighth Air Force into combat prematurely without adequate resources, before the technology of long-range fighter aircraft had advanced enough to make the odds of survival a reasonable hope. But his role involved more than simply ordering his aircrews to bomb strategic targets.; Eaker walked a high wire, balancing many opposing forces. During the crucial year of 1943, he dealt with the demands of a superior pushing for deep-penetration missions without long-range fighter protection, flagging morale of aircrews facing grim chances of surviving, and British naysayers proclaiming the theory foolhardy.; These diverse challenges required an extraordinary combination of diplomacy, discernment, leadership, aviation instincts, and communication skills. Eaker held to his convictions, rightly or wrongly, and daylight precision bombing survived. He stands as the most important person in the initial implementation of daylight precision bombing in Europe, and thus was responsible for shaping an important aspect of how America fought World War II. |
