Abstract
Timothy Schultz, who is currently the Dean of Academics at the United States Naval War College, examines the historical relationship between pilot and aircraft. Schultz argues that from the early days of flight, the United States sought to mitigate the limitations posed by manned flight. He begins by examining how the United States tried to meld the pilot to the aircraft. Afterward, he analyses efforts made by the United States Air Force to either eliminate or limit the human component in piloting the aircraft. Schultz’s analysis of the complications of manned flight breaks new ground in air power studies and opens up new opportunities for historians to follow up his steps.
Much of the book examines the struggle to adapt the pilot to the plane. Schultz contends that advances in aircraft technology outpaced the capabilities of the pilot. This required the Army Air Corps to develop technology and training for pilots and air crew. He writes, ‘Cruising at high altitude posed significant physiological problems for bomber crews in particular. Fighter pilots risked the same difficulties when they ventured up to high altitudes, but they also faced G-related impairments during rapid, high-speed maneuvers’ (p. 35). After demonstrating the bodily problems with manned flight, Schultz analyses the technology that made it possible for the pilot to survive. This includes developments in oxygen masks, pressurized suits and cabins, and training methods to survive the extreme conditions. Schultz also goes beyond the physiological problems with pilots. He examines the efforts made by the Army Air Corps to cope with human errors when it came to piloting aircraft. This includes the development of instrument-only flying and auto-pilot systems in order to ‘minimize human error and maximize precision’ (p. 100).
Schultz expands upon the theme of the United States taking the pilot out of the equation in the second half of the book. This includes flight automation and unmanned flight. Schultz argues that when General Henry H. Arnold took command of the Army Air Corps in 1938, development of unmanned aircraft technology increased. According to Schultz, Arnold laid the groundwork for future research into unmanned aircraft by promoting its study with Dr. Theodore von Kármán. Arnold and Kármán recognized that while the future of American air power laid in unmanned flight, the technology to remove the pilot entirely from the equation did not yet exist. Instead, the author asserts that as planes became more automated, the role of the pilot shifted to that of a system manager. The author writes, ‘We have seen the pilot transition from primary operator to systems manager, and Autonomous Horizons envisions a new transition for the pilot from systems manager to codependent partner’ (p. 154). The author’s argument is effective: as technology progressed, the role of the pilot as the sole operator of the aircraft declined.
As with any book, there are areas to criticize. While the book does provide the reader with an excellent analysis of the physiological problems for the pilot, greater examination of the psychological limitations of the pilot is needed. An analysis of the effects of combat stress on American air crews has the potential to aid the author’s arguments. Oral histories or primary source documents from flight surgeons assigned to combat units would add further weight to the argument about the inherent difficulties with conditioning air crews to flight conditions and combat. In addition, further examination of the transition process from pilots as operators to systems managers would be welcome, as well as an analysis of aircraft and pilot technology during the Cold War to bridge the gap between 1945 and the 2000s.
Overall, however, Schultz has done an exceptional job at breaking new ground in the history of American air power. This is a well-researched and written analysis of the struggles of manned flight. By examining the difficulties posed by the pilot’s personal limits, Schultz’s book will serve as a guide for future historians to follow in examining the relationship between the pilot and the plane.