5 Structure of Air Power Air Forces are defeated or weakened at least as much by their internal illusions as by the enemy. The minute that, readiness data ceases to be realistic; training is cut back or separated from realistic combat conditions; effectiveness is exaggerated; equipment performance and lethality are overstated; gaps in training and doctrine are ignored; and an Air Force becomes a bureaucracy rather than a ruthlessly self –critical fighting machine; an Air Force places itself in the position when it must try to carry out in war the preparation it should have carried out in peacetime. — Anthony Cordesman AIR STRATEGY Air strategy could be termed as the process of coordinating the development, deployment and employment of air power assets to achieve national security objectives. Air power with its intrinsic characteristics of speed, elevation and reach provides tremendous strategic options. These strategies are then prosecuted by air campaigns which comprise of a variety of air operations. As aerial warfare evolved and the importance of command of the air grew, a distinctive strategic area for application for air power emerged. This involved operations to deter, contain or defeat the enemy’s air power, a strategy which came to be termed as “counter air”. Air forces can also be employed both independently of, and in 31