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#1 The bomber dream was the hope of air force commanders that their bomber aircraft would be the main instruments of winning future wars. The seeds had been sown in the First World War, when air commanders took planes away from the direct support of the field armies and sent them deep behind the enemy lines.

#2 The American bomber dream was based on the belief that strategic bombing could starve the land armies of materials and cause their collapse. The Second World War was the chance for this theory to be tested.

#3 The American commanders felt strong enough to raid Germany for the first time in January 1943. They attacked a U-boat construction yard at Wilhelmshaven, and for the next six months, the heavies went to targets in Germany.

#4 The American strategic bomber in Europe was at a crossroads. It had to tackle targets located even deeper in the German homeland, but the casualty rate in Blitz Week had exceeded that at which operations could be maintained. There seemed to be no prospect of a long-range fighter being supplied that would be able to escort the heavy bombers for more than a fraction of their flight.