GW13: The Air War

In this episode, Sean and James take to the skies to explore the dramatic rise of air combat during World War I. We trace how fragile, open-cockpit reconnaissance planes evolved into deadly fighters and bombers. We also will see how the various combatants introduced aerial tactics, which gave rise to aces like the Red Baron. We will discuss the first large-scale strategic bombing campaigns. We explore the daring lives and short survival rates of early pilots, the terror of zeppelin raids, and the birth of aircraft carriers and naval aviation. By the war's end, aviation had been transformed from a novelty into a central weapon of modern warfare.

You can listen to GW13: The Air War online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

GW13: The Air War is an episode from Key Battles of American History by Support.

This episode is 53:18 long.

This episode was published on Mar 4, 2026.

Yes. Use the heart button on the episode page to add it to your favorite episodes list.

Yes. This page shows related episodes from Key Battles of American History when more episodes are available from the podcast feed.