Airpower over the Rhine: The Luftwaffe, the French Air Force, and the Battle of France

History of Military Aviation

by James Slaughter

Airpower over the Rhine is a critical new perspective on the air battle between the French Air Force (FAF) and the Luftwaffe in the skies over France during May and June 1940. Why were the French overpowered in the air? What factors led to their defeat? Author James F. Slaughter III examines how each country’s leadership created the circumstances that enabled the Luftwaffe’s victory over the FAF and Germany’s ultimate defeat of France.

Conventional wisdom―especially in the English-speaking world―purports that the FAF was a nonentity whose loss was all but guaranteed. But the FAF did, in fact, show up to fight. With virtually every disadvantage and under impossible conditions, FAF pilots nevertheless managed to land significant blows against the Luftwaffe―far more than they are given credit for today. Slaughter traces this misconception to a largely collaborationist cover-up beginning with the Rion Trials in Vichy France that was then perpetuated by Cold War politics and popular mythology.

Rather than absence or incompetence, the FAF lost due to a series of complex internal conflicts within French leadership, both political and military, that set them up to fail. This work compares and examines six fundamental areas that affected the development of the FAF and the Luftwaffe: aircraft and equipment, the aircraft industries, intelligence, the experiences of the Spanish Civil War, doctrine and training, and politics and air power. It also offers new details about and insights into Pierre Cot, a controversial French politician largely unknown outside France. Airpower over the Rhine explains Cot’s internal and external impact on the development of the French Air Force and details what is known about his apparent efforts to spy for the Soviet Union. Thoroughly researched and compellingly written, this book will appeal to anyone with an interest in World War II.

272 pages, Hardcover

First published March 18, 2025

Reviews

[Chad Manske · Rating 4 out of 5]

James Slaughter’s “Airpower over the Rhine: The Luftwaffe, the French Air Force, and the Battle of France” is an incisive and revisionist examination of aerial warfare in the opening stages of World War II, offering a compelling reappraisal of one of history’s most misunderstood campaigns. Slaughter delves deeply into the oft-neglected narrative of the French Air Force (FAF) during Germany’s blitzkrieg assault in May and June of 1940. Contrary to the long-held English-language view that the FAF was wholly inept or non-existent, Slaughter demonstrates that French pilots not only stood and fought but inflicted far more damage on Germany’s Luftwaffe than is commonly acknowledged. He attributes the enduring misconceptions about the FAF’s role partly to the Vichy-era cover-up and Cold War narratives, perpetuating the myth of French aerial passivity. The book’s analytical strength lies in its comparative structure. Slaughter carefully weighs six key dimensions impacting both air forces: aircraft and equipment, industrial capacities, intelligence, lessons drawn (or not) from the Spanish Civil War, doctrine and training, and the volatile realm of politics and air power. Through this lens, he reveals that the FAF’s defeat was not a simple matter of inferiority but rather the outcome of tangled leadership, doctrinal rigidity, fragmented command, and hamstrung radio and radar coordination. His study underscores that political infighting—and not a lack of heroism—most handicapped France in the skies. Particularly fascinating is Slaughter’s portrait of Pierre Cot, a controversial French politician, whose influence—sometimes as a suspected Soviet agent—shaped strategic decisions within the FAF, further complicating France’s defense. Reviewers have lauded the book as “refreshing and valuable,” commending Slaughter’s masterful command of sources and his success in “resurrecting the reputation” of French airmen. Slaughter not only dispels the myth of French incompetence, but persuasively contends that FAF pilots, despite flying outdated planes and lacking robust doctrine, consistently challenged the Luftwaffe and contributed significantly to its war-weariness. “Airpower over the Rhine” stands as a must-read for military historians and general readers alike, offering nuanced insights and a long-overdue acknowledgment of the FAF’s courage and sacrifice in the Battle of France.