Billy Mitchell's impact on the development of the American military aviation is undoubtedly profound, but his progressive and radical approach to convincing others of the importance of air power led others to articulate: "Mitchell's vision of the potential of air power would cost him his perspective." Believing in the accomplishments achieved during the fighting of World War I, Mitchell set out to demonstrate the importance of air power. aircraft challenging the establishment on the importance of air power. Mitchell began with a balanced approach regarding this "new instrument of warfare," but as time passed he and his Air Service students abandoned a vision of a balanced force to focus solely on strategic bombing leading up to World War II. Billy Mitchell's leadership, antics and influence influenced how this occurred, resulting in profound impacts on a service that ended up focusing on strategic bombing while having to learn air operations. to support ground forces in combat. Mitchell stated, “future military operations may not proceed… without control of the air,” and history has proven him right. His relentless effort, which has become more radical over time, has cost the air service aircraft and lives as it failed to achieve the promised decisive victory. The gap between technology and desired effects led to setbacks until tactics and technology met at a point in the axis where air dominance contributed. to the team's victory in World War II. Mitchell and his followers should have realized that an aircraft, like the “Flying Fortress,” could not perform all the required missions, protect themselves from enemy fighters and win the war. They should have foreseen this the founders of flight “knew that large airplanes were built with... half of paper......between the Army and the Air Service. As a result, Air Service generals had to focus on the construction capabilities of the relations to achieve a team victory in both the European and Pacific theaters and the main tasks had to be developed in combat. The development of American air power bears the hallmark of Mitchell's influence, both positive and negative. Finding the right balance in today's environment will be a testament to Mitchell's original vision of a balanced Air Force that keeps America safe. Works Cited Biddle, Tami Davis. Rhetoric and reality in air warfare. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 2002.Hughes, Thomas A. Over Lord: General Pete Quesada and the Triumph of Tactical Air Power in World War II. New York: Free Press, 1995.Hurley, Alfred F. Billy Mitchell: Crusader for Air Power. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2006.