U.S. Army's 1918 Infantry Tactics with the Airplane

by Jeffrey A. Rothermel

February 8, 2026

Captain's Log:

Regulating an Idea:

The Airplane

Numerous ideas and concepts make their way into a used and rare bookstore. Two books from the same time period are in the store and pictured below. Both touch upon the beginnings of American air power. Each one is interesting. When they are combined, they are fascinating because they illustrate the development of ideas.

American Dictionary in 1914:

Aëroplane

U.S. Army Tactics Regulation in 1918:

Airplane

When the United States entered the First World War it was using the term "aëroplane." The below picture of the heavy twenty-five-pound American 1914 dictionary does not use the term "airplane." Eventually, Americans were using the term "airplane." The U.S. Army tactics manual printed in France in 1918 at the end of the war had two paragraphs dedicated to how infantry units should operate with and against airplanes.

NOT FOR SALE (NFS): Picture by Jeff Rothermel of U.S. Army 1918 Tactics Manual referred to as a regulation. The second larger book is THE CENTURY DICTIONARY AN ENCLOPEDIC LEXICON OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE Revised and Enlarged Edition. Edited by William Dwight Whitney and Benjamin E. Smith.  New York: Century Company, 1914. [4, blank], xii, 7,046pp., [estimated 2,000 unnumbered pages "The Century Dictionary Supplement"], 28pp., [4, blank]. [Both books are NOT FOR SALE]

The 1914 spelling of Airplane, according to THE NEW CENTURY DICTIONARY was "aëroplane"

You may note the lack of a page number. Publishing a book without page numbers (pagination) is aggravating.

The photo below is the Table of Contents for the 1918 Infantry Drill Regulations (Provisional) American Expeditionary Forces:

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END

Historical Point One

Aëroplane to Airplane

NEXT POINT

Military Regulations

Regulations

for the

Order and Discipline

of the

Troops

of the

United States

by

Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben

[Link to U.S. Army War College

Original copy of von Steuben's

Regulations.]

The Blue Book (Click Me)

Today, the U.S. Army has hundreds of regulations. Today, one thing that is generally not codified in a regulation is tactics. The U.S. Army prefers to allow the commander the freedom to innovate and adapt faster than the enemy and therefore does not dictate military technique in a regulation. It took a long time to break the tradition that was developed at Valley Forge. Historian Benson Bobrick painted it in the following manner:

"In February 1778, Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben, a professional soldier and veteran of several European campaigns, arrived at Valley Forge. Steuben had served on the staff of Frederick the Great, and at Valley Forge, in remarkably short time, he transformed the roughshod Continentals into an effective European-style fighting force....[1]

Steuben's genius was his ability to unite Prussian virtues to those of the American mind. ... ... ... Until his advent, troops had drilled from at least three separate manuals, so that were brigaded together, disarray ensued. Steuben's new military manual, or "Blue Book," simplified and shrewdly adapted standard procedures to the particular requirements of training patriot troops. ... ... ... Steuben had begun his task with almost no knowledge of English, and his young secretary and translator, Pierre Duponoeau, remembered that "when some movement or maneuver was not performed to his mind he began to swear in German, then in French, and then in both languages together..."[2]

Historically, militaries like to prepare for the last war that was fought. As the U.S. military professionalized, it learned to allow commanders the ability to innovate in accordance with the situation. Similar to NFL football teams, each army unit will normally have its own playbook often called a SOP (Standard Operating Procedure) that they use to execute drills or tactics. Today, the U.S. military uses tactical field manuals rather than regulations to serve as guides concerning how organizations operate in a joint environment (Army, Marine, Air Force, Navy, Space, coalition partners, ....).

The 1918

Infantry Drill

Regulations

The final page of the 1918 INFANTRY DRILL REGULATIONS had two paragraphs (550 & 551) concerning Infantry and Airplanes. Paragraphs 550 starts with:

"550. During all offensive operations, the men carrying panels or flares should keep them in a handy accessible position. All men should be thoroughly instructed regarding the airplane signals, and general characteristics of enemy and friendly airplanes. One man from each platoon will be designated especially to watch airplanes. Immediately upon being sighted, an airplane should be closely watched until it is ascertained whether it is enemy or friendly. If it is hostile, preparing small-arms and machine-gun fire, but no firing will be permitted until directed by platoon or higher commanders. If it is friendly, it will be closely watched for signals..."[3.]   

The 1918 American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) Infantry Drill Regulations marks a turning point in American military document techniques for tactics. The Infantry Drill Regulations have faded away, though the half step, sidestep, back step, and halt mandated in the 1918 regulation are still taught by U.S. Army Drill Sergeants today. American air power which was born in the First World War continues to evolve.

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Source Footnotes:

[1.] Benson Bobrick. Angel in the Whirlwind. NY: Penguin Pooks,1998, p.331.

[2.] Bobrick, 334-5.

[3.]  Infantry Drill Regulations (PROVISIONAL) AMERICAN ESPEDITIONARY FORCES Part I 1918. Paris: Imprimerie E. Desosses. p. 145.

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Miscellaneous Notes.

THE CENTURY DICTIONARY AN ENCLOPEDIC LEXICON OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE Revised and Enlarged Edition. Edited by William Dwight Whitney and Benjamin E. Smith.  New York: Century Company, 1914. pp. Vii & IX. [Also refer to Captain's Log: The Century Dictionary Published in the Year 1914 ]

Captain's Log (Click Me)

Infantry Drill Regulations (PROVISIONAL) AMERICAN ESPEDITIONARY FORCES Part I 1918. Paris: Imprimerie E. Desosses. p. 144. Approx. dimensions: 4.375"x 6.75" x .375" [A few markings inside the book indicate it belonging to unreadable name in cursive pencil: ----- A. Dahl. Purple Ink stamp: Co. "G" 349th Inf.

Use of Artificial Intelligence Google Search:

Company G, 349th Infantry which was formed at Camp Dodge, Iowa in August 1917. It belonged to a John A. Dahl (G/2-349 INF)/88th Division (Cloverleaf Division). The unit deployed to France where it conducted training and defensive operations in the Alsace sector. The unit "returned to the U.S. in May 1919 and was demobilized on June 12, 1919, at Camp Dodge."

Company G / 349 Infantry during World War One Google Search (Feb 8, 2026):