[264], Limited air operations continued over Japan in the weeks following the Japanese government's decision to surrender. Courtesy Naval History and Heritage Command. Articles with the HISTORY.com Editors byline have been written or edited by the HISTORY.com editors, including Amanda Onion, Missy Sullivan, Matt Mullen and Christian Zapata. Hansell protested this order, as he believed that precision attacks were starting to produce results and moving to area bombardment would be counterproductive, but agreed to the operation after he was assured that it did not represent a general shift in tactics. [155], August 1945 began with further large-scale raids against Japanese cities. [221] As a result of the cabinet directions, captured Allied airmen were subject to trial and possible execution. [44] The GDC's authority was strengthened when the army units in the Eastern, Central and Western military districts were placed under its command in May. The small number of Second Air Volunteer Group personnel who were dispatched from the United States in November 1941 were diverted to Australia upon the outbreak of war. The B-25 was chosen because of its unique combination of range, bomb capacity and short takeoff distance that would allow it to launch from an aircraft carrier. [30], Following the Doolittle Raid, the next air attacks on Japan were made against the Kuril Islands in mid-1943. From 17 April until 11 May, when the B-29s were released for other duties, about three-quarters of XXI Bomber Command's effort was devoted to attacking airfields and other targets in direct support of the Battle of Okinawa; this included 2,104 sorties flown against 17 airfields. These raids were frequently made against airfields to destroy aircraft being held in reserve to attack the expected Allied invasion fleet. [273] Royal Australian Air Force, British Royal Air Force, Royal New Zealand Air Force, USNavy and United States Marine Corps air units were also deployed to Japan for occupation duties. A firebombing raid conducted against Tokyo by 172 B-29s on 25 February was considered successful as it burnt or damaged approximately one square mile of the city's urban area. [36] Construction of the airfields began in January 1944, and the project involved around 300,000 conscripted Chinese labourers and 75,000 contracted workers. Urban areas were typically congested, and most buildings were constructed from highly flammable materials such as paper and wood. [194] Allied casualties in this operation were heavy, however, as 126 aircraft were shot down. The Japanese mounted a strong defense that downed two Superfortresses and damaged another 64; another eight B-29s were lost to other causes. The planners estimated that incendiary bomb attacks on Japan's six largest cities could cause physical damage to almost 40percent of industrial facilities and result in the loss of 7.6million man-months of labor. https://www.thoughtco.com/world-war-ii-doolittle-raid-2360534 (accessed July 1, 2023). In an operation conducted primarily to raise morale in the United States and to avenge the attack on Pearl Harbor, 16 B-25 Mitchell medium bombers were carried from San Francisco to within range of Japan on the aircraft carrier USSHornet. The Doolittle Raid of April 18, 1942 was the first U.S. air raid to strike the Japanese home islands during WWII. [316], On two occasions Japanese citizens have sued their government for damages from the bombings, arguing that the government is culpable for having waged a "reckless war" that provoked the bombings and for requiring civilians to remain in the targeted areas. As the storm raged, Cole jumped from the plane into a 9,000-foot abyss of darkness, broken by only the occasional lightning flash. [114][115], The Japanese government was concerned about the results of the March firebombing attacks as the raids had demonstrated that the Japanese military was unable to protect the nation's airspace. The 313thBombardment Wing lost only 16 B-29s during mine-laying operations. Starting in 1946, to celebrate the birthday of Jimmy Doolittle, the Raiders held an annual celebration that eventually evolved into their annual goblet ceremony and reunion. [287] The Twentieth Air Force lost 414 B-29s during attacks on Japan. On the morning of April 18, 1942, the Navy flotilla encountered and sank an enemy patrol, which forced Doolittle to launch the raid hours earlier and from a greater distance than planned. [69], The Twentieth Air Force's XXI Bomber Command began arriving in the Mariana Islands during October 1944. Though the raid caused relatively minor physical damage, it forced Japan to recall combat forces for home defense, raised fears among Japanese civilians and boosted morale among Americans and their allies abroad. James H. Doolittle - HISTORY [191][192] On 24, 25 and 28 July the Allied fleet attacked Kure and the Inland Sea and sank an aircraft carrier and three battleships, as well as two heavy cruisers, a light cruiser and several other warships. [285] The postwar Japanese government calculated in 1949 that 323,495 people had been killed by air attacks in the home islands. Cole was awoken from his sleep with news that the mission was beginning immediately. [77], Four of XXIBomber Command's next five raids were made against targets in Nagoya. In addition to the loss of mostly civilian life, the raids contributed to a large decline in industrial production. [68] These bases were more capable of supporting an intensive air campaign against Japan than those in China as they could be easily supplied by sea and were 1,500 miles (2,400km) south of Tokyo, which allowed B-29s to strike most areas in the home islands and return without refueling. In the weeks after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, US President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued a directive that efforts be made to directly strike Japan as soon as possible. The most veteran of all US Army Air Force's B-25 groups, the 17th BG was immediately transferred from Pendleton, OR to Lexington County Army Air Field in Columbia, SC under the cover of flying maritime patrols off the coast. Another raid was launched against Tokyo on the morning of 15 August, and the 103 aircraft of its first wave attacked their targets. Gifu, Sakai, Sendai and Wakayama were struck on 9 July. The Japanese government implemented harsh penalties against civilians who kept copies of these leaflets. Of the 16 planes, 15 either crash-landed or the crew elected to bail out on the eastern coast of China. [183] On 10 July TF38's aircraft conducted raids on airfields in the Tokyo region, destroying several aircraft on the ground. The USAAF attacks were broken off for five months following a raid on 11 September 1943 when nine of the 20 B-24s and B-25s dispatched were lost, but raids by USNavy PBY Catalinas continued. [92][93] In 1943 the USAAF tested the effectiveness of incendiary bombs on Japanese-style buildings at Eglin Field and the "Japanese Village" at Dugway Proving Ground. Historian E. Bartlett Kerr supported this assessment, and argued that the firebombing of Japan's major cities was the key factor motivating Hirohito's decision to end the war. Built by North American Aviation, the B-25 Mitchell was a medium bomber which could carry 3000 pounds of bombs at a max speed of 328 miles per hour, and carried six .50 caliber M2 Browning machine guns for protection. 2023, A&E Television Networks, LLC. Most of the factories targeted were badly damaged. [217] During the last weeks of the war Superfortresses were able to operate with near impunity owing to the weakness of the Japanese air defenses; LeMay later claimed that during this period "it was safer to fly a combat mission over Japan than it was to fly a B-29 training mission back in the United States". However, few shelters were built due to shortages of concrete and steel. These raids formed part of the preparation for the invasion of Japan. [33], In late 1943, the United States Joint Chiefs of Staff approved a proposal to begin the strategic air campaign against the Japanese home islands and East Asia by basing B-29 Superfortress heavy bombers in India and establishing forward airfields in China. What areas did the Doolittle Raid target? [52], From autumn 1943 the Japanese government took further steps to prepare the country's major cities for air attacks. [179] Another attack was made against these airfields on 8 June; two days later, TF38 left Japanese waters for a period of recuperation at Leyte in the Philippines. The men had such a good time that the reunion became an annual affair. In return, the P-51 pilots claimed 26 "kills" and 23 "probables" for the loss of three fighters. (Prior to that, they had been kept at the Air Force Academy.). IJAAF and IJN losses during the defense of Japan were 1,450 aircraft in combat and another 2,750 to other causes. Doolittle Raid - National Museum of the USAF [187] This operation has been described as the single most effective strategic air attack of the Pacific War. [299], The atomic bomb attacks have been the subject of long-running controversy. During these attacks it destroyed six of the nine targets attacked for the loss of four B-29s. Command and control of the air defenses was fragmented, and the IJAAF and IJN did not coordinate their activities or communicate with each other. A Special Delivery for the Doolittle Raiders | Smithsonian Voices [208] Owing to the short range of the country's land-based radar, and Allied attacks on IJN picket ships, the defenders typically had only about an hour to respond to incoming B-29s once they had been detected. The city was found to be covered in smoke and haze, however; as a result, the plane's pilot, Major Charles Sweeney, decided to attack the secondary target of Nagasaki instead. The incendiary raid conducted on the night of 29/30 November by 29 Superfortresses burnt out one tenth of a square mile, and was also judged to be unsuccessful by the Twentieth Air Force's headquarters. [167] As the United States had only occasionally used mines up to this time, the Japanese military had placed relatively little emphasis on keeping its minesweeping force up to date. [97] Arnold and the Air Staff wanted to wait to use the incendiaries until a large-scale program of firebombing could be mounted, to overwhelm the Japanese city defenses. [89], Several factors explain the poor results of XXIBomber Command's precision bombing campaign. Last WWII 'Doolittle Raider' dies at 103 | Fox News American losses were low compared to Japanese casualties; 136 B-29s were downed during the campaign. The raid demonstrated how vulnerable the Japanese home islands were to air attack . His work has appeared in numerous publications, including The Boston Globe, The New York Times, and National Geographic Traveler. Only one Superfortress was shot down during this attack, and all members of its crew were rescued after the aircraft ditched into the sea. However, the proposal subsequently lapsed. Conceived in January 1942 in the wake of the devastating Japanese surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, the "joint Army-Navy bombing project" was to bomb Japanese industrial centers, to inflict both. Every Doolittle Raider was also decorated by the Chinese government. Find History on Facebook (Opens in a new window), Find History on Twitter (Opens in a new window), Find History on YouTube (Opens in a new window), Find History on Instagram (Opens in a new window), Find History on TikTok (Opens in a new window), Current one is: April 18. The first patrols were not flown until 30 August, when they were made in conjunction with the landing of General Douglas MacArthur and the USArmy's 11th Airborne Division at Atsugi airfield. The Japanese military later incorrectly concluded that the ROCAF had aircraft capable of mounting attacks at a range of 1,300 miles (2,100km) from their bases, and took precautions against potential raids on western Japan when Chinese forces launched an offensive during 1939. [102], To maximize the effectiveness of the firebombing attacks, LeMay ordered the B-29s to fly at the low altitude of 5,000 feet (1,500m) and bomb by night; this represented a significant change from the Command's standard tactics, which focused on high-altitude daylight bombing. Three B-29s were lost. As a result, the B-29s were able to inflict severe damage on urban areas while suffering few losses. Wikimedia Commons Aircraft burning after the Japanese attack on the American naval base at Pearl Harbor. A potential mission was also seen as a way to boost flagging American morale while causing the Japanese people to doubt their leaders. During the same period the command conducted a number of attacks on targets in Manchuria, China and Formosa from its bases in China, as well as striking targets in Southeast Asia from India. The number of fighters available declined from late January, however. "[315], The moral defense of the attacks on Japanese cities rests on an argument that they saved lives by shortening the war. and that "LeMay recognized that what he was doing would be thought immoral if his side had lost. Not wanting to jeopardize the mission, the command was given and each of the modified bombers slowly crept off the Hornets flightdeck one of the most daring aerial missions in American history was underway. [172] TF58 approached Japan undetected, and attacked airfields and aircraft factories in the Tokyo region on 16 and 17 February. Such firefighting forces that did exist lacked modern equipment and used outdated tactics. [72] The first attack, codenamed Operation San Antonio I, was made against the Musashino aircraft plant in the outskirts of Tokyo on 24 November 1944. Supply drops began 10 days later, and continued until 20 September. [34] Chennault, by now the commander of the Fourteenth Air Force in China, advocated building the B-29 bases near Kweilin, closer to Japan, but this area was judged too vulnerable to counterattack. Group photo of the 12th Bombardment Group with a B-25 Mitchell bomber in the North African desert in November 1942. It was also one of the most economical. [148], Five major precision bombing attacks were conducted as part of the Empire Plan. Japan's military and civil defenses were unable to stop the Allied attacks. For the attack, each aircraft carried three high explosive bombs and one incendiary bomb. [5] The urban area attacks reduced the morale of the Japanese population, and postwar surveys conducted by the USSBS found that air attacks were the most important factor in convincing the Japanese that the war had been lost. [224] Mobs of civilians also killed several Allied airmen before the Japanese military arrived to take the men into custody. [9] However, these areas were rapidly captured by Japanese forces, and the USAAF heavy bomber force in the Philippines was largely destroyed when Clark Air Base was attacked on 8 December 1941. [107] Japanese opposition to this attack was relatively weak; 14 B-29s were destroyed as a result of combat or mechanical faults and a further 42 damaged by anti-aircraft fire. The first raid on Tokyo was the Doolittle Raid of 18 April 1942, when sixteen B-25 Mitchells were launched from USS Hornet to attack targets including Yokohama and Tokyo and then fly on to airfields in China. [73] In response, the IJAAF and IJN stepped up their air attacks on B-29 bases in the Mariana Islands from 27 November; these raids continued until January 1945 and resulted in the destruction of 11 Superfortresses and damage to another 43 for the loss of probably 37 Japanese aircraft. [232] The "Trinity" test of the first nuclear bomb was successfully conducted on 16 July. Bombers of the Fifth and Seventh Air Forces also made firebombing attacks against Tarumizu on 5 August, Kumamoto on 10 August and Kurume the next day. Doolittle Raid: How A Tiny Airstrike Doomed Japan In WW2 A violent thunderstorm and fuel gauges running close to empty, however, testified that the intended plan was not possible. [23], USAAF aircraft bombed Japan for the first time in mid-April 1942. But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us! [12], The Japanese government's pre-war plans to protect the country from air attack focused on neutralizing enemy air bases. Of the 477 B-29s dispatched, 456 struck their targets and Hamamatsu, Kagoshima, Yokkaichi suffered extensive damage; overall 6.073 square miles (15.73km2) of buildings were destroyed. "World War II: Doolittle Raid." [210], Air combat was most intense in late 1944 and early 1945. [107][108] Damage to Tokyo's war production was also substantial. Twelve of the sixty-one Superfortresses that reached the target area were shot down, including one which was destroyed in a suicide ramming attack. While en route to the city the Mustangs flew through thick clouds, and 27 of the fighters were destroyed in collisions. [150] Four days later, 510 B-29s escorted by 148 P-51s were sent against nine factories in southern Honshu and Shikoku. These aircraft reached India, but remained there as the Japanese conquest of Burma caused logistics problems and Chinese Nationalist leader Chiang Kai-shek was reluctant to allow them to operate from territory under his control. Assessing Low's idea, Doolittle initially hoped to take off from a carrier, bomb Japan, and then land at bases near Vladivostok in the Soviet Union. [88] This attack was a large-scale test of the effectiveness of firebombing. Japanese fighters did not attempt to intercept these aircraft and their bombing altitude of 30,000 feet (9,100m) was beyond the range of most anti-aircraft guns. [274][275] There was no Japanese resistance to the Allied occupation, and the number of air units stationed in the country was gradually reduced from late 1945. [65], Stalin had agreed at the 1944 Moscow Conference to the United States having air bases near Vladivostok (where six or seven large aerodromes had been built and reserved[65]) and the use of Petropavlovsk (Kamchatka) as a base; he "virtually ignored" earlier proposals for a Soviet bombing force. XXIBomber Command B-29s flew six practice missions against targets in the Central Pacific during October and November in preparation for their first attack on Japan.
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