During the late summer and early fall of 1940, a pivotal air conflict was waged in the skies over Britain. This conflict was the famous Battle of Britain. If the Germans had emerged victorious it would have permitted them to execute Operation Sea Lion, a full scale ground invasion of Britain (Deighton 80). Losing was not an option for the British. During the Battle of Britain, Air Chief Marshall Hugh Dowding distinguished himself as a major contributor to the British victory in the skies. Dowding is most famous for pioneering a complex air defense system, known as the Dowding system. The Dowding system proved to be instrumental in defeating the Germans because of its integration of new technology on the ground and in the air, its efficient reporting chains, and its operational and tactical flexibility. The task facing Dowding was seemingly overwhelming. Losing the air battle over Britain would surely lead to a battle on the ground. While Britain could manage to put together a successful air defense, defending against a full-scale Nazi amphibious invasion would have proved to be much more challenging. Germany had practice using its blitzkrieg strategy and had proven itself…show more content… Upon his return to England, Dowding earned his pilot’s license and joined the Royal Flying Corps and fought with them in France during World War I (Braun 3). Due to an argument with Hugh Trenchard, Dowding was promoted out of France and sent back to Britain for a new assignment. After World War I, Dowding joined the RAF was promoted to air marshal in 1933. During the 1930’s Dowding gained renown for pushing the development of better fighters like the Hurricane and Spitfire (Braun 3). Due to his interest in defense and defensive technologies, Dowding was placed in charge of Fighter Command in July 1936 (Braun