École

1943 · rif. 12163 — Harrisburg PA: Army Air Forces Intelligence School 1943. Very good. Quarto unpaginated about 100pp. illustrated with 83 original tipped-in photographs and an envelope containing 13 more loose and unidentified images laid-in. Housed in the original cardstock clasped folder. Many of the pages have a bottom fold which does not fully open without the potential to tear though all of the contents can be read with some effort. Some pages a touch foxed and a few prints are loosened from their pages and laid-in in the right place. Overall in very good condition. A well-organized and illustrated military textbook for a wartime class on aircraft identification which was probably taught in many places but organized at the US Army Air Force base in Harrisburg. An introductory sheet in perfect bureaucratic fashion placed near the end of this textbook states: "The course in Aircraft Identification consists of ten hours spaced over a period of six weeks." It goes on to list a series of 42 aircraft--American German Italian French and Japanese--which will be easily identified by all successful students by the end of the course. The first few dozen pages consist of detailed folding charts with data on dimensions payloads etc. Another section of about 12pp. gives a background on various best practices when trying to identify aircraft as well as some of the principles behind the course. The course utilized the "WEFT" system wings engine fuselage tail to help individuals soldiers intelligence agents etc. identify planes in the field from various angles at different heights and in certain contexts. Most of the pages dedicated to individual planes contain two photographs from different angles and with different shading trying to mimic real battlefield conditions under which someone might try to identify an aircraft. An unusually engaging wartime military textbook appealing to photography aviation and military collectors alike. Not located in OCLC thus notably absent in the holdings of the Army War College Library which retains most technical manuals and course books. Army Air Forces Intelligence School unknown