eli5: Why does the US Military have airplanes in multiple branches (Navy, Marines etc) as opposed to having all flight operations handled by the Air Force exclusively?
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Spending creep/mission creep/jobs for the boys and girls/empire building/“managers” protecting their fiefdoms.
Guarantee you could cut military spending in half without compromising capability.
Because then the other military branches, which run their own specialized operations all over the world, as well as in the US, would be completely reliant on the Air Force and it would create unnecessary red tape. The Air Force is a relatively small branch so if you switched to this model, a significant portion of the air force’s job would simply be as a transport service for the other branches. This isn’t efficient. You give each branch the planes they need for their specific use and let them work out their own logistics.
I don’t know the answer but I can tell you that if Canada is ever called upon from an ally to set sail, we will show up in row boats with a Gatling gun attached to the stern. And we’ll show ‘em the full force of the Canadian Navy!
As a former heavy airlift USAF pilot, (C-5 & C-17) our mission was to support large movements (hehe) or resupply of all branches of service…. My previous aircraft (C-130) was also used by USN, USMC and USCG, usually to support a specific mission. Flying Herks was the best!
The individual armed forces (Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force) are divided based on the type of warfare they fight. The Army is mainly focused on ground warfare and infantry-type operations, The Navy handles conflict on the water, The Air Force specializes in aviation combat, and the Marines (I’m honestly not sure what they do, but I know they do it very well). But in each of those specialties, the same tool can be useful. Having air power to attack enemy artillery positions is useful, as is having the capacity to move your army troops across the water. Just because your larger specialty is the land/sea/air doesn’t mean that you don’t benefit from the use of planes, boats etc.
Bcs the Navy would be at the mercy of the Air Force and their priorities may differ….?
When the Marines need air support it’s a lot easier to get that organically due to mostly logistical reasons. The navy owns floating airfields so they need planes, and the airforce is 100% dedicated to AirPower.
The branches of the military are less about the tools they use and more about the outcomes they are looking to achieve. Air superiority? Air force. Naval superiority? Navy.etc
Naval superiority uses aircraft to achieve that, but because the implementation is in support of Navy goals and strategy they are a naval asset. Rinse and repeat for helicopters in the army.etc
Why do plumbers, electricians, and carpenters all carry screwdrivers?
Without diving into history and to answer the heart of the question: to simplify logistics and command by preventing hard “silos”.
Often, it’s considered better to have a specialist who knows their field well rather than making one person/organization need to know how to do everything. A lot of times, that’s true. However the tradeoff of relying on outside specialists is it can make the day to day or one-off situations more complex than it needs to be.
For example, a taxi driver/chaffeur could be considered a specialist and have their own vehicle. However, the tradeoff is if you have to take a taxi to work every single day there is increased cost and there’s a risk of a taxi not being avaliable when it’s needed. There is a benefit to owning and knowing how to drive your own car, even though you are not a professional driver. Especially in one off situations, it can be beneficial to be able to drive yourself. Yes, sometimes you need a giant bus and driver to drive a crowd around, and in those cases it doesn’t make sense to own a bus. But for a large majority of cases, it’s easier just to own your own car.
In the same way, yes, the airforce may be the specialist for air operations. If you need a air specialist (let’s say drone usage), then yes, the airforce is the best option. However, if you need to get troops or equipment from point a to point b quickly, it’s simpler for the army to just have their own airplanes. Yes, if it is a massive or unique operation that requires air specialists, the air force may be involved or utilized. But a lot of times it’s just easier for a branch to just have their own plane.
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