WI: Nationalist China invests more resources into a navy and airforce after 1933

Dr Richard Vogt, a German aircraft designer, went to Japan in the '20s and designed some aircraft for Kawasaki. He also trained the designer who drew up the Ki-61. Japan had an industry which went about importing aircraft and engines, building under license, and then developing their own. The Sempill Mission brought plans for aircraft carriers, and Herbert Smith, like Vogt, designed aircraft, and trained new designers. Vogt returned to Germany and worked at Blohm and Voss. Sempill returned to England as a Japanese spy. Herbert Smith was shunned upon return to England, and bought a hotel. They left Japan with air power, and confidence. But Japan had the industry, and political unity.

The situation in China was different. China got advice from advisors who made sales and taught, but no industry was in place to be developed. No designers arose. Contractors built assembly plants to assemble crated aircraft, but it went slowly. Pilot training was a joke as pilots were accepted on connections rather than ability. The only thing that worked was to bring in foreign planes and foreign pilots under foreign leadership.

Both China and Japan got plenty of input, but while Japan absorbed it, China wasted it.
 
I would think that the country most likely to support China in building its airforce would be the USSR, who provided a fair bit of aid iOTL in other ways.

Odd thought. how about the Czechs, say, who had a decent aircraft industry? They could build a factory or two in China, use Czech designs and Chinese money, and maybe develop something more advanced, with the extra market, than iOTL?

My first thought for small countries with an aviation background was Sweden, but it looks like they didn't do much on their own in the interwar years.
 
What Nat-China needs is 80 German trained divisions.

Once Chinese troops win on land and sit in Busan the Japanese navy would find itself short on the fuel needed to leave port no matter how much tonnage it has.
 
William Pawley, a sales rep of Curtiss Wright, established CAMCO in China in 1933, to build aircraft in China from factory kits. His factory had to be relocated several times due to Japanese interest, and they did assemble the AVG Flying Tiger a/c in Burma. He ended up moving his plant to Bangalore, where the Maharaja of Mysore took interest, and made an investment, which established Bangalore and Hindustan Aircraft as an industrial center to this day. So, an attempt to establish a Chinese aircraft industry ended up establishing an Indian aircraft industry.
 
I would think that the country most likely to support China in building its airforce would be the USSR, who provided a fair bit of aid iOTL in other ways.

Not in the time period. Chiang had been on the outs with the Soviets ever since he cracked down on the CCP in 1927. China and the Soviets eventually reconciled to a degree as a result of wanting to limit Japan's power in the region, but the Soviets weren't going to be building either the industry to build planes or the training of pilots during this time period. The only real options for Chiang are non-colonial powers that aren't seen as predatory to China - either Germany or the United States. During the Sino-Japanese War, Stalin did provide a lot of aide - but that was Soviet pilots (excuse me, "volunteers") flying Soviet aircraft with little attention paid to building up the actual Chinese air force. Stalin wanted experience for his own pilots, not an independent Chinese air force that Chiang could later use against the CCP.

In terms of industry, even the little manufacturing done in China was based on importing kits where Chinese factories assembled the plane in China. They didn't manufacture the items themselves. It would take a lot more time for China to build the industrial infrastructure where they can build planes from scratch (and this is assuming really technical parts are still supplied overseas). Because we know Germany will not be in a position to provide kits after late 1939, then it is best for China to keep the Americans involved as much as possible.

The best POD is probably to butterfly away the Fujian rebellion so that the Jouett mission continues, and eventually American aircraft manufacturers set up assembly plants for their kits. The best manufacturer would be the Curtiss-Wright Aircraft company. They already provided planes for the Chinese airforce such as the Hawk II and III biplanes and P-36 monoplane (Model 75). Curtiss's salesman in China, William Pawley, was heavily involved in Chinese aviation at the time - he started the Central Aircraft Manufacturing Company (CAMCO) which assembled the Hawk II and III, and was President of China Airways (later the China National Aviation Corporation).

IOTL, Chiang took his eyes off the ball for too long after the change from the American mission to the Italian mission. Even by keeping the Americans involved, there needs to be someone who manages it properly. IOTL, Chiang finally asked his wife to do it who brought in Claire Chennault in 1937. Perhaps ITTL, Chiang asks his wife to look over the air force much earlier, and she provides the leadership necessary to make sure the aircraft are properly updated even while the Americans continue the training.

With trained pilots and modern aircraft ready in 1937, the Chinese could really punish the Japanese at Shanghai - perhaps even prevent the landing by having their planes attack ships. Ground based aircraft were much superior to carrier aircraft in this era, and with sufficient planes and pilots might even sink some major ships. This would shift the war towards the north and protect the Yangtze Delta for quite a while.
 
They could have done it on a clandestine basis similar to the German military missions in the USSR in the 1920s and 1930s. By the early 1930s the Germans could have been looking for locations to put their new aviation equipment and doctrine developed in secret in the USSR to the test and China would be a good choice since the Germans already had a significant military mission there.
There's nothing stopping the Germans from designing military aircraft to be built outside of Germany. If individual Germans were to volunteer to assist in the building of an Air Force in China I don't think it breaches the Treaty, even if the volunteers are on a leave of absence from the Army.
 

nbcman

Donor
There's nothing stopping the Germans from designing military aircraft to be built outside of Germany. If individual Germans were to volunteer to assist in the building of an Air Force in China I don't think it breaches the Treaty, even if the volunteers are on a leave of absence from the Army.

With regards to building military equipment outside of Germany, Article 168 of the Versailles Treaty stated:

The manufacture of arms, munitions, or any war material, shall only be carried out in factories or works the location of which shall be communicated to and approved by the Governments of the Principal Allied and Associated Powers, and the number of which they retain the right to restrict. Within three months from the coming into force of the present Treaty, all other establishments for the manufacture, preparation, storage or design of arms, munitions, or any war material whatever shall be closed down. The same applies to all arsenals except those used as depots for the authorized stocks of munitions. Within the same period the personnel of these arsenals will be dismissed.

Per the treaty, Germany was supposed to notify the Allied and Associated powers wherever they were manufacturing military equipment. Also Article 170 prohibited the import of weapons to Germany and the export of weapons to foreign countries:

Importation into Germany of arms, munitions and war material of every kind shall be strictly prohibited.

The same applies to the manufacture for, and export to, foreign countries of arms, munitions and war material of every kind.

So Germany couldn't produce military equipment for their consumption or for the Soviets.

With regards to volunteers in building an Air Force in China, Article 179 of the Versailles Treaty stated:

Germany agrees, from the coming into force of the present Treaty, not to accredit nor to send to any foreign country any military, naval or air mission, nor to allow any such mission to leave her territory, and Germany further agrees to take appropriate measures to prevent German nationals from leaving her territory to become enrolled in the Army, Navy or Air service of any foreign Power, or to be attached to such Army, Navy or Air service for the purpose of assisting in the military, naval or air training thereof, or otherwise for the purpose of giving military, naval or air instruction in any foreign country.

Therefore it should have been viewed as a violation of the treaty-but military training missions to other countries were clearly being overlooked by the 1930s.
 
They could have done it on a clandestine basis similar to the German military missions in the USSR in the 1920s and 1930s. By the early 1930s the Germans could have been looking for locations to put their new aviation equipment and doctrine developed in secret in the USSR to the test and China would be a good choice since the Germans already had a significant military mission there.

1) The USSR was a tightly controlled police state, with foreigners excluded from nearly all of the country except under supervision of the state. 1920s China was a chaos of warlords and bandits, with foreigners roaming everywhere. There was no possibility of keeping anything secret there.

2) The USSR was am industrialized country ready to build up its own arms. All they wanted from Germany was technical advice. China needs everything, and Germany has nothing for itself.
 
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