Blitzkrieg in the German Attack on the West

In May 1940 Germany unleashed its attack on the West, employing the fast-moving combined-arms tactics that became known as Blitzkrieg. Air power was central to the assault, with the Luftwaffe working in close coordination with advancing armored and infantry forces against French, British, Belgian, and Dutch armies.

Although the Allies possessed substantial air forces and, by some measures, numerical advantages, the Germans seized the initiative from the outset. Many French aircraft were caught and destroyed on the ground in the opening blows, and the surviving Allied air units were unable to mount an effective, concentrated defense against the well-organized German air offensive.

The Luftwaffe's dive bombers and fighters supported the rapid armored thrust through the Ardennes, helping the Germans break through Allied lines and drive toward the Channel. The campaign culminated in the fall of France in June 1940 and demonstrated, on a grand scale, the decisive role that tactical air power could play in modern mechanized warfare.