But aircraft
appeared to have an immense advantage in combat. They possess
virtually unlimited space in which to manoeuvre, and are able to
select the elevation from which to hurl their missiles of
destruction.
There is another and even more important factor in their favour.
A projectile fired, or even dropped, from a height, say of 5,000
feet, is favourably affected by the force of gravity, with the
result that it travels towards the earth with accumulating energy
and strikes the ground with decisive force.
On the other hand, a missile discharged into space from a weapon
on the earth has to combat this action of gravity, which
exercises a powerful nullifying influence upon its flight and
velocity, far in excess of the mere resistance offered by the
air. In other words, whereas the projectile launched from
aloft has the downward pull of the earth or gravitational force
in its favour, the shell fired from the ground in the reverse
direction has to contend against this downward pull and its
decelerating effect.
At the time when aircraft entered the realms of warfare very
little was known concerning the altitudes to which projectiles
could be hurled deliberately.
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