ABSTRACT
The control of such points would create prerequisites for the successful employment of one's naval and air forces in the struggle for sea control. Another method is to capture enemy naval/air basing areas from the land side by the quick advance of ground forces supported by the air force. History gives numerous examples of a stronger sea power acquiring some key positions in a given maritime theater, which then were used to employ its naval forces and, in modern era, aircraft in the struggle for sea control. Such positions could be acquired by diplomacy, political/economic pressure, or enticements or by the use of force. Venice was one of the strongest sea powers in the Mediterranean and Europe in the thirteenth century. In the era of mobile warfare as was the case in World War II, armies supported by air forces greatly contributed to the successful outcome of the struggle for sea control by capturing the enemy's naval/air basing areas.
