The First Army Air Service was an Air Service, United States Army unit that fought on the Western Front during World War I as part of the Air Service, First United States Army. The First Army Air Service was the largest and most diverse Air Service combat organization of the American Expeditionary Forces in France, and most American Air Service combat units were assigned to it when assigned to the front.
The organization was demobilized in France on 15 April 1919 with the demobilization of the United States First Army. It was reconstituted in the Organized Reserve on 15 October 1921 as Headquarters, First Army Air Service, assigned to the First Army and allotted to the First Corps Area. It was then allotted to the Regular Army in 1928, and then inactivated in December 1929.
History Origins
The history of the First Army Air Service dates to the first American Air Service personnel arriving in France. On 15 January 1918, Colonel William Mitchell was appointed Chief of the Air Service, I Corps, First Army. At this time, the I Corps was being formed for the purpose of administratively handling all of the American troops then on the Western Front. Headquarters was located at Neufchâteau, France. When the first American Aero Squadrons arrived at the front in April 1918, they were assigned to the quiet Toul Sector. At this time, the American Air Service on the front consisted of only a few Aero Squadrons of the 1st Pursuit Group.Series "C", Volume 1, Early history of Air Service commands at the Front. Gorrell's History of the American Expeditionary Forces Air Service, 1917–1919, National Archives, Washington, D.C.
At the end of June, 1918, Air Service, I Corps moved from the Toul Sector to the Château-Thierry Sector as part of I Corps. The I Corps Observation Group was already in the Chateau-Thierry Sector was under the command of First Army. The Assistant Chief of Air Service, Zone of Advance, felt it was necessary to coordinate the observation groups of First Army with the pursuit groups. On 10 August 1918, the First American Army Air Service was established.
Organization The unit was formally organized on 26 August at Ligny-en-Barrois, France. It consisted of the French Aerial Division, which consisted of a large number of pursuit and day bombardment squadrons. In addition, there was one other French pursuit group and three American pursuit groups-one American day-bombardment group-the 1st Army observation, and one French Army artillery group for the adjustment of long-range artillery fire. Eight night-bombardment squadrons of the British Royal Air Force. were to cooperate with the First Army Air Service whenever the tactical situation made such action expedient. The establishment of the First Army Air Service marked the first concentration of American air forces under its own commander.
The front of the First Army, extending from Châtillon-sous-les-Côtes to Pont-sur-Seille, insofar as aviation was concerned, had been very quiet for some time. The enemy performed his photographic reconnaissances with single aircraft, flying at high altitudes, and his pursuit patrols were small and infrequent. In the matter of aerodromes, the enemy was better off than the First American Army, and possessed many small fields within access of any part of the front line. Several aerodromes were unoccupied, and were in such condition that they could be utilized quickly by reinforcements, their barracks and hangars being more or less serviceable.Maurer, Part One, A Tactical History of the Air Service
For the Americans, almost every available field had been taken up and they were short in hangars and billet space, so that by the time the allocation of aviation units had been made to the First Army, the problems of locating and housing the units was a serious one.
Corps Observation Groups
The Corps Air Service of each corps operating under First Army was made up of one squadron for each division and one squadron for the corps. The Air Service of the 2d Colonial Corps consisted entirely of French squadrons. The I Corps observation group was made up of the 1st, 12th, and 50th Aero Squadrons and two French squadrons. In the IV Corps group were the 8th, 135th, and 90th Aero Squadrons and one French squadron. The V Corps group consisted of the 88th, 99th, and 104th Aero Squadrons, only one of which had had a considerable experience in active front-line operations, the corps chief of Air Service and staff remained at the location of the group.Maurer, Part Two, A Tactical History of Corps Observation
The I Corps group was located in the vicinity of Toul on two aerodromes. The 1st and 12th Aero Squadrons were stationed at Gengault Aerodrome just east of Toul, which had formerly been occupied by the 1st Pursuit Group in the spring of 1918. The 50th Aero and 211th (French) Squadrons occupied the newly constructed Bicqueley Aerodrome, just south of Toul. The IV Corps group entire occupied Ourches Aerodrome. The French squadrons of the Air Service of the 2d French Colonial Corps were located at Rumont, to the northeast of Bar-le-Duc. The V Corps group occupied Souilly Aerodrome. With the exception of the V Corps group, each Corps Air Service was established and ready for operations by the first week in September. The V Corps group was not completed until the day of the Battle of Saint-Mihiel, when the 88th Squadron arrived from the Vesle. The one new squadron of the I Corps group, the 50th Aero, had but recently arrived at the front. It was equipped with Airco DH.4 airplanes with the new Liberty engine. Two of the three American squadrons of the IV Corps group were also equipped with the De Havilland DH.4 Liberty; the 90th Squadron had French Salmson 2.A2 airplanes. In the V Corps group all squadrons were equipped with the Salmson.
First Army Observation Group During the inactive period on the Toul sector covering the late spring and summer of 1918 and up to the St. Mihiel offensive which commenced on 12 September, army observation in the American Air Service was carried out by one unit, the 91st Aero Squadron. The 91st served as a nucleus for the long-range reconnaissance missions for First Army; while the various Corps observation groups were used for battlefield, tactical observation missions. Previous to its assignment to the First Army, the 91st worked under orders of the Chef de I'Aeronautique of the 8th French Army. The group added two new aero squadrons, the 24th and the 9th, but as these had not had actual battle experience, they did little work other than perfecting their own training. The 91st Aero Squadron, therefore, took care of all of the long-range day reconnaissances.Maurer, Part Three, A Tactical History of Army Observation
1st Day Bombardment Group
1st Day Bombardment Group had its beginning 18 May 1918, when the 96th Aero Squadron, the first unit of day bombardment, was established at Amanty Aerodrome to begin active operations against the enemy. The flying equipment of the 96th Squadron consisted of ten Breguet 14B.2 bombing airplanes, equipped with 300 horsepower type 12 F. E. V. Renault motors.
The 1st Day Bombardment Group had a threefold object: the destruction of material, reconnaissance, and observation of enemy tactics in combat. Except during an offensive there was but little opportunity to attack massed troops. The principal mission during such a period was to destroy the enemy's transport lines by which supplies and personnel were delivered to the front, or by which ore and other products of military importance were delivered to the rear. The most favorable targets were the railroad centers where the traffic arteries converged. Long distance raids proved wonderful opportunities for deep reconnaissance, especially of enemy railroad movements. Any pronounced current of railroad traffic, going in one direction, or converging at one point, would be reported by every observer making that particular raid. Further confirmation was unnecessary, for the observers were obliged to submit their written raid reports without consulting each other. Photographs of the bursts often revealed troop and construction activity at the objectives, and were subject to careful interpretation.
1st Pursuit Wing
Two American pursuit groups were in process of organization for the establishment of the 1st Pursuit Wing. These were already located at Gengault and Vaucouleurs Aerodromes.Maurer, Part Four, A Tactical History of Pursuit Aviation
All of the American pursuit squadrons in existence, with the exception of the 17th and 148th Aero Squadrons, which were operating with the British, were concentrated in the 1st Pursuit Wing, with headquarters at Toul, and the 1st Pursuit Group, with headquarters at Rembercourt Aerodrome. The 1st Pursuit Wing consisted of the 2d and 3d Pursuit Groups; the 2d Pursuit Group composed of the 13th, 22d, 49th and 139th Aero Squadrons, and the 3d Pursuit Group consisted of the 28th, 93d, 103d, and 213th Aero Squadrons. The 1st Pursuit Group consisted of the 27th, 94th, 95th, and 147th Aero Squadrons. One French Group (G.C.16) was allocated to the 1st American Pursuit Wing commander for duty in connection with the offensive.
With these units at his disposal, and with the general conditions of the air program for the offensive in mind, the Chief of Air Service, First Army, made certain plans for the pursuit units for the attack. He decided to utilize the American pursuit all along the front for the purpose of protective barrage at all altitudes, with incidental duties as occasion arose, of a more combative nature, such as ground strafing, balloon destruction, and offensive patrols. Offensive patrols cross the enemy line in sufficient strength to cruise over his rear area, search out enemy aircraft, and attack them, with the object of causing maximum casualties and inflicting the greatest possible damage to his air service, and with the further object of obtaining definite moral superiority.
St. Mihiel offensive Preparation In August 1918, the situation of the enemy in the St. Mihiel sector was approximately the same as that described in Toul sector. The sector of the front from Saint-Mihiel north to Châtillon-sous-les-Côtes was organized in approximately the same manner as the Toul or Saint-Mihiel sector. The enemy was favored by the terrain, which offered many natural positions of great strength. These positions had been well organized for a prolonged defense. Some intimation of an impending allied offensive in this sector had reached the enemy, and immediately preceding the attack of 12 September he commenced a redistribution of his available forces, especially with a view to echeloning them in depth. As far as was known at the time, the enemy strength in the sector remained about the same as it had been throughout the summer months.
In the air the strength of the enemy continued the same as it had been since the previous spring. A few pursuit patrols of Fokker airplanes were reported as operating in this sector, but it was quite probable that these were new airplanes received as replacements for the Albatross and Pfalz type formerly in use. Individual observation and photograph airplanes operated over the sector, but no unusual number of hostile aircraft was at any time encountered or reported before the opening of the Saint-Mihiel offensive.
The operations undertaken during the period of preparation. Visual reconnaissance, Photographic reconnaissance, Artillery fire adjustment, and Exercises with artillery and infantry.