The term "air defence" was probably first used by Britain when Air Defence of Great Britain (ADGB) was created as a Royal Air Force command in 1925 [Evidence from a WW1 RPPC shows the term Air Defences was in use by 1916. … See more

Earliest use
The use of balloons by the U.S. Army during the American Civil War compelled the Confederates to develop methods of combating them. These included the use of artillery, small arms, and saboteurs. They were … See more

Most Western and Commonwealth militaries integrate air defence purely with the traditional services of the military (i.e. army, navy and air force), as a separate arm or as part of artillery. In the British Army for instance, air defence is part of the artillery arm, while in the See more

The essence of air defence is to detect hostile aircraft and destroy them. The critical issue is to hit a target moving in three-dimensional space; an attack must not only match … See more

While navies are usually responsible for their own air defence, at least for ships at sea, organisational arrangements for land-based air defence … See more

Although the firearms used by the infantry, particularly machine guns, can be used to engage low altitude air targets, on occasion with notable success, their effectiveness is generally limited and the muzzle flashes reveal infantry positions. Speed and altitude … See more

Mobility
Most modern air defence systems are fairly mobile. Even the larger systems tend to be mounted on … See more