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19

The general plan to be followed from the beginning of the artillery preparation and during the first and second day's attack was to concentrate all aviation forward of the lines as far as the hostile detraining and refilling railheads throughout the zone of operations, vigorously attack enemy aviation and balloons and seize every opportunity to attack troops, trains and important targets on the ground.

With this end in view, the Day Bombardment was to be employed at medium distance from the zone of attack on detraining and refilling railheads, such as Metz, Chambley, Conflans, Dommary-Barroncourt, Longuyon, bridges of the Meuse between Dun and Sedan, and important aviation fields previously ordered by G-3; at short distances against hostile positions of command and large gathering of troops and materiel.

The Pursuit, [[strikeout]] consisting of the French Aerial Division and the Army Pursuit Groups, [[strikeout]] was to be employed as follows: That of the French to destroy all hostile aviation and balloons throughout the zone assigned to the Army Corps as far as the line of (included between the line of) exploitation Regny-sur-Moselle---Vigneulles-Etain and the line Arnaville-sur-Moselle Etain inclusive; and to cover the flanks, to a distance of 12 kilometers north of Pont-a-Mousson and as far as Etain inclusive. The remainder to destroy all hostile aviation in front of our lines to a depth of five kilometers; to insure the absolute liberty of action of our Observation Aviation and balloons throughout this zone, and to attack those hostile balloons which were considered especially dangerous.
The Second and Third Pursuit Groups had been equipped with bomb racks capable of carrying four 25-pound bombs each, and were to be used when the opportunity presented itself to attack enemy troops and transport on the ground, especially reinforcements