A decree dating from
November, 1916, announced the separation from the other services of the
Air Fight Forces (_Luftstreitkraefte_), which were to be placed under a
staff officer, the _Kommandeur der Luftstreitkraefte_. This new
_Kommandeur_, who was to superintend the building of the machines as
well as the training of the pilots, was Lieutenant General von Hoeppner,
with Lieutenant Colonel Tjomsen as an assistant. The squadrons,
numbering more than 270, were divided into bombing, chasing, patrolling
and field escadrilles, these last being intrusted with scouting,
photographing, and artillery work, in constant touch with the infantry.
Most of these novelties were servilely copied from French aviation. The
Germans had borrowed the details of _liaison_ service, as well as those
for the regulation of artillery fire, from the French regulations. The
commander of the aeronautical section of the Fifth German Army (Verdun)
said in a report that "a conscientious aviator was the only reliable
informant in action." And his supreme chief, the Kronprinz, commenting
upon this sentence, drew the following conclusions: "All this shows once
more that through methodical use of Infantry Aviation, the command can
be kept informed of developments through the whole battle.
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