Aerial warfare

Aircraft continued to carry out these roles during World War I (1914-1918), where the use of planes and zeppelins for strategic bombing also emerged.

The rise of fighter aircraft and of air-to-air combat led to a realisation of the desirability of achieving air superiority.

Closer integration of attacking aircraft with ground operations ("battlefield support") also developed during World War I.

[2] During World War II (1939-1945), the use of strategic bombing increased, while airborne forces, missiles, and early precision-guided munitions were introduced.

Ballistic missiles became of key importance during the Cold War, were armed with nuclear warheads, and were stockpiled by the United States and the Soviet Union to deter each other from using them.

This role can fulfil a variety of requirements, including the collection of imagery intelligence, observation of enemy maneuvers and artillery spotting.

Airborne forces are military units, usually light infantry, set up to be moved by aircraft and "dropped" into battle, typically by parachute.

The formations are limited only by the number and size of their aircraft, so given enough capacity a huge force can appear "out of nowhere" in minutes, an action referred to as vertical envelopment.

Anti-aircraft warfare or counter-air defence is defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action.

[citation needed] Non-self-propelled airborne explosive devices are generally referred to as shells and usually have a shorter range than missiles.