전환기의 항공력의 역할

Airpower in the Transition Era

If one were to say that war is political in its nature, then war could be one of the several ways of achieving political goals. Thus, the aspect of wars will, in certainty, be altered by the changes in political environment. Wars in the past broke out mainly due to ideological differences that ran to extremes and were of high intensity. However, wars today show such restraints as controlling them beforehand or during the war in anticipation of the post-war situation. The trend of ideas to actualize such wars in the effective operation of airpower is on the rise. Airpower normally possesses speed and operative flexibility as well as capability of destruction, so it is possible to destroy the politically declared targets clearly. Previous airpower was merely employed as means of helping to vertically detouring the spatial obstacle that the ground forces encountered. Over the years, due to the speedy improvement of aviation technology and of ideas concerning wars in space, more advanced application has been developed. but they also were nothing more than an auxiliary role to facilotate the ground forces, that needed a longer effective range of firepower and did not become forces with the right of self-determination, that is, the fact of decisive war that makes its outcome. However, under transitional strategic environment like that of the present, Airpower possesses not only the capability to operate as a decisive means of war but also as theories to support it. The advancement in air technology has enabled supremacy over targets in depth, and the development of electronic technology has empowered the improvement of degree of destruction but also triumphant war by means of an overwhelming supremacy in a relatively short period. Thus, the method of systematic destruction that accomplishes the stated goals while rejecting the damage of accumulative destruction has been realized. The progress of such a concept has also proved that the counter-force strategy that has been developed in nuclear strategy is useful in conventional warfare as well. Therefore, it can be said that the under today's strategic environment airpower is an outstanding means of military strategy that can deeply affect to achieve the national objectives.