Flying had become an indispensable part of everyday life. New tasks were planned for aircraft. Especially in the years immediately before World War I, the development of aviation was unstoppable. Although the Wright brothers helped the US Air Force with the first military aircraft, it was the Italian military that transformed this sporting and peaceful invention into a tool of war. The entire art of warfare had to be redefined, and military regulations rewritten. The well-known General Giulio Douhet was the first to recognize the strategic value of this new weapon. The transition from theory to practical application occurred very quickly and was already realized during the Libyan War in 1911. Large maneuvers in August and the Italian-French round flight in September confirmed the military usability of the airplane. A few days later, war broke out in Libya. A total of 9 aircraft were shipped to Tripoli, including 2 Bleriot XI monoplanes, 3 Nieuport monoplanes, 2 Farman biplanes, and 2 Etrich Taubes. The first actions took place on October 22, when preliminary training flights had to be completed. The following day marked the first reconnaissance flight in the history of aerial warfare. On November 1, the first bombing raid occurred, and in March 1912, Captain Carlo Piazza conducted the first photo reconnaissance flight. The airplane had become a weapon. This fifth volume will describe how this new era of aviation began and how it evolved up to World War I.