1919 Nov: Trenchard sets permanent RAF organisation and doctrine. (AI Study Guide)
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1919 Nov: Trenchard sets permanent RAF organisation and doctrine.
Title
1919 Nov: Trenchard sets permanent RAF organisation and doctrine
Overview
In November 1919 Air Marshal Hugh Trenchard established the permanent structure and guiding principles of the post-war Royal Air Force. Amid pressure to dismantle the service after victory, he argued successfully for a unified, independent air force with centralised control, professional training, and a clear doctrine emphasising air offence, imperial policing and the strategic value of air power. His reforms created durable institutions—staff colleges, training systems, command arrangements and doctrinal foundations—that shaped RAF identity and influenced global air force development throughout the twentieth century.
Glossary of terms
• Royal Air Force is Britain’s independent air service established in 1918.
• Trenchard was the RAF’s first Chief of the Air Staff and key architect of its early doctrine.
• Centralised control refers to unified command of air assets at service level.
• Imperial policing describes air operations used to maintain order in overseas territories.
• Air Staff is the senior headquarters responsible for strategy and planning.
• Staff college provides advanced professional education for officers.
• Doctrine is authoritative guidance on the employment of military power.
• Cadre refers to the core trained personnel forming a service’s backbone.
• Air offence is the principle emphasising attacking to seize the initiative.
• Force structure describes how a service’s units, roles and capabilities are organised.
Key points
• Preserving independence: After the First World War the RAF faced intense political pressure to disband or return to Army and Navy control. Trenchard argued that an independent air service was essential for national defence, shaping a persuasive case that secured the RAF’s survival in 1919.
• Establishing organisational permanence: Trenchard created a stable peacetime structure, including commands, training establishments and administrative systems. This institutional solidity allowed the RAF to retain core expertise despite post-war reductions.
• Doctrine built around air offence: He championed the principle that air power should seize the initiative by striking first and operating offensively. This mindset became central to RAF doctrine and influenced its later strategic bombing orientation.
• Centralised control of air assets: Trenchard insisted that air forces must be commanded as a single entity rather than dispersed piecemeal to local commanders. This principle enabled coherent planning and efficient use of scarce resources.
• Creation of professional training systems: He expanded flying schools, technical training and officer education. The RAF Staff College, founded under his direction, ensured a continuous pipeline of doctrinally literate leaders.
• Imperial policing as practical justification: Air control in overseas territories demonstrated that the RAF could deliver cost-effective security. These operations provided political and financial justification for maintaining an independent air service in the interwar years.
• Retention of wartime experience: Trenchard prioritised keeping an experienced cadre of officers and NCOs. Preserving this institutional memory helped the RAF maintain competence during austerity and later rebuild rapidly when rearmament began.
• Development of service identity: He cultivated an ethos of discipline, initiative and offensive spirit. This identity shaped RAF culture and distinguished it from the older services.
• Linking doctrine to national strategy: Trenchard framed air power as a strategic instrument capable of influencing an adversary’s will, giving the RAF a distinctive role in national defence planning.
• Foundation for future expansion: The structures and principles set in 1919 enabled the RAF to grow into a major force in the 1930s. His reforms ensured that when rearmament began, the RAF possessed coherent doctrine, trained leadership and an organisational core ready for expansion.
Official Sources and Records
• AIR 2 Air Ministry policy and planning papers: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C44
• Trenchard papers (RAF Museum): https://www.rafmuseum.org.uk/research
• Royal Air Force post-war organisation records (The National Archives, AIR 8): https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk
• Royal Air Force overview (National Army Museum): https://www.nam.ac.uk/explore/royal-air-force
• First World War and interwar air power resources (Imperial War Museums): https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections
Further reading
• Olsen, JA (ed.) 2010, A History of Air Warfare, Potomac Books, Washington DC.
• Olsen, JA (ed.) 2011, Global Air Power, Potomac Books, Washington DC.
• Gray, CS 2012, Airpower for Strategic Effect, Air University Press, Maxwell AFB.
• Van Creveld, M 2011, The Age of Airpower, PublicAffairs, New York.
• Overy, RJ 2014, The Bombing War: Europe 1939–1945, Allen Lane, London.