"Of course, with the increasing number of aeroplanes one gains increased opportunities for shooting down one's enemies, but at the same time, the possibility of being shot down one's self increases"
About this Quote
Progress dressed up as arithmetic: more planes mean more chances to kill, and more chances to die. Richthofen strips aviation of its romance and sells it back as a blunt risk equation. The line works because it punctures the early-20th-century myth of flight as liberation. In the air war over the Western Front, the sky wasn’t a frontier; it was a crowded hunting ground. The very technology that expanded tactical possibility also multiplied vulnerability. Modernity doesn’t pick a side.
As an aviator speaking from inside the machine, Richthofen’s tone is matter-of-fact, almost accountant-like. That’s the subtext: survival depends on seeing war as a system, not a story. The symmetry of “shooting down” versus “being shot down” collapses heroism into reciprocity. It’s not humility exactly; it’s professional clarity. A fighter ace can’t afford to believe his own legend for long, because belief makes you predictable. The phrase “of course” adds a chilling wink: anyone paying attention should already know that escalation is self-escalation.
Context sharpens the cynicism. World War I air combat was still new enough to be marketed as chivalric dueling, yet lethal enough to be industrialized quickly. The Red Baron, turned into propaganda on both sides, hints at how disposable even the celebrated become when a theater scales up. His intent isn’t philosophical grandstanding; it’s a warning disguised as common sense: when you normalize growth in force, you normalize growth in casualty.
As an aviator speaking from inside the machine, Richthofen’s tone is matter-of-fact, almost accountant-like. That’s the subtext: survival depends on seeing war as a system, not a story. The symmetry of “shooting down” versus “being shot down” collapses heroism into reciprocity. It’s not humility exactly; it’s professional clarity. A fighter ace can’t afford to believe his own legend for long, because belief makes you predictable. The phrase “of course” adds a chilling wink: anyone paying attention should already know that escalation is self-escalation.
Context sharpens the cynicism. World War I air combat was still new enough to be marketed as chivalric dueling, yet lethal enough to be industrialized quickly. The Red Baron, turned into propaganda on both sides, hints at how disposable even the celebrated become when a theater scales up. His intent isn’t philosophical grandstanding; it’s a warning disguised as common sense: when you normalize growth in force, you normalize growth in casualty.
Quote Details
| Topic | War |
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