Italian Aircraft in East Africa I

Africa Orientale Italiana (AOI)

HQ Addis Abeba Limited in resources and reliant on supplies via Libya, this area covered Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somaliland, and was widely fought over from June 1940 to November 1941.The command was split into north, east, west, and south areas. They patrolled the Sudanese, Kenyan, French and British Somaliland borders and watched for activities in the Red Sea, Indian Ocean, and at Aden. Attacks were launched on British Somaliland and southern Sudan. Many battles were fought with antiquated and sparse numbers of aircraft on both sides. The area was unusual in that its bomber units, for the most part, had duplicate numbers with those in other command areas.