The Air Force is one of the three armed forces that have the duty of defending the United States against any enemy that might attack. The other two armed forces are the Army and the Navy. The Air Force is the youngest of the three. Through World War II it was a branch of the Army and was called the Army Air Corps. On September 18, 1947, the Air Force became independent. Because air power is absolutely necessary in modern warfare, many people consider the Air Force the most important branch of the defenses of the United States.
There are four ways in which the Air Force must be prepared to defend the United States and fight for the country in time of war. 1. If the enemy sends bombing planes to attack the United States or any of its possessions or bases, the job of the Air armed Force is to fight them in the air and destroy them or chase them off. For this it uses “fighter planes,” especially of the type called interceptors. In time of war the Air armed Force must bomb enemy territory, to destroy the factories in which they make war materials, and the bases from which they might attack the United States, and sometimes for the purpose called retaliation- that is, to punish the enemy for its attacks on the United States. For these purposes the Air armed Force uses bombing planes of various types.