[90] By March 1945 the USAAF's commanders were highly concerned about the failure of the campaigns mounted from China and the Mariana Islands, and believed that the results to date made it difficult to justify the high costs of the B-29 program and also threatened their goal of demonstrating the effectiveness of independent air power. On April 2, 1942, the aircraft carrier USS Hornet was part of a secret plan to strike back at Japan. The Doolittle Raid, also known as Doolittle's Raid, as well as the Tokyo Raid, was an air raid on 18 April 1942 by the United States on the Japanese capital Tokyo and other places on Honshu during World War II. These strikes continued the next day, and sank eight of the 12 railway car ferries which carried coal from Hokkaido to Honshu and damaged the remaining four. [214] The effectiveness of Japanese anti-aircraft batteries also decreased during 1945 as the collapse of the national economy led to severe shortages of ammunition. [281] Overall, most of the new buildings constructed were of poor quality, and it was not until well after the war that major urban improvement projects were undertaken. Accordingly, the Joint Target Group (JTG), which was the Washington, D.C.-based organisation responsible for developing strategies for the air campaign against Japan, developed plans for a two-stage campaign against 22 Japanese cities. [305] In particular, Prime Minister Kantar Suzuki stated that the combination of the conventional B-29 raids, Potsdam Declaration and atomic bombings gave the Government the opportunity to begin negotiations with the Allies. The idea for a plan to launch bombers from an aircraft carrier came from US Navy Captain Francis S. Low and was quickly approved. Over 600 major industrial facilities were destroyed or badly damaged, contributing to a large decline in production. The statement included a threat that if Japan did not surrender under the terms specified in the Potsdam Declaration it would be subjected to "a rain of ruin from the air, the like of which has never been seen on this earth". The aircraft then continued to China and the Soviet Union, though several crashed in Japanese-held territory after running out of fuel. The Doolittle Raid of April 18, 1942 was the first U.S. air raid to strike the Japanese home islands during WWII. [299], The atomic bomb attacks have been the subject of long-running controversy. (The other crew landed in the Soviet Union.). Further F-13 sorties were conducted during early November to gather intelligence on aircraft factories and port facilities in the TokyoYokosuka area. Around 90percent of the American tonnage fell in the last five months of the war. The average time between takeoffs was less than four minutes. While plans for attacks on Japan had been prepared prior to the Pacific War, these could not begin until the long-range Boeing B-29 Superfortress bomber was ready for combat. [194] Allied casualties in this operation were heavy, however, as 126 aircraft were shot down. [49], The Japanese government also sought to improve the country's civil defenses in response to the Doolittle Raid and the threat of further attacks. These aircraft were placed in reserve to counterattack the anticipated Allied invasion. This campaign illustrated the powerful synergy of American joint operations. This campaign caused little damage and was abandoned in March 1945. Statistics compiled by the USSBS show a correlation between the number of B-29 sorties directed at different industries and the amount by which their production declined, but air attacks were not the only reason for these differences. James H. Doolittle, an aviation pioneer and a retired lieutenant general in the Air Force who led the daylight air raid on Tokyo and other Japanese cities four months after the Japanese.
We strive for accuracy and fairness. 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. On 9 June, two groups of B-29s bombed an aircraft factory at Narao and another two groups raided a factory in Atsuta; both facilities were badly damaged. [81], Arnold was disappointed with what XXIBomber Command had achieved, and wanted the Command to produce results quickly. 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. XXBomber Command lost 125 B-29s during all of its operations from bases in India and China, though only 22 or 29 were destroyed by Japanese forces; the majority of the losses were due to flying accidents. [287] The Twentieth Air Force lost 414 B-29s during attacks on Japan. [195] On 29 and 30 July the carrier aircraft struck at Maizuru, sinking three small warships and 12 merchant vessels, before the fleet sailed east to avoid a typhoon and replenish its supplies. Below are the top five veteran research questions, where to go for further resources, and how to begin your search. Strategic bombing raids began in June 1944 and continued until the end of the war in August 1945. Lieutenant Colonel James Jimmy Doolittle was placed in charge of the raid and quickly determined the B-25 would be the best plane to get the job done. [13] When the Pacific War began, the Japanese government believed that the best way to prevent American air raids was to capture and hold the areas in China and the Pacific from which such attacks could be launched. During the attacks on 18 and 19 March, the American naval aviators claimed to have destroyed 223 Japanese aircraft in the air and 250 on the ground, while the Japanese placed their losses as 161 of the 191 aircraft they committed in the air and an unspecified number on the ground. Everest sees its single deadliest day, Dick Clark, host of American Bandstand and New Years Rockin Eve, dies, Suicide bomber destroys U.S. embassy in Beirut, The Great San Francisco Earthquake topples buildings, killing thousands, Federal court decides to release poet Ezra Pound from hospital for criminally insane, Grace Kelly and Prince Rainier of Monaco marry, Chinese students protest against government. The men and women of the U.S. military remain forever indebted to the WWII veterans who demonstrated selfless service and sacrifice that characterizes the Greatest Generation in defense of global peace and security, and the Doolittle Raiders represent this spirit of creativity and innovation. No B-29s were lost in these raids. [78] The third raid was a daylight incendiary attack which was conducted after the Twentieth Air Force directed that 100 B-29s armed with M-69 bombs be dispatched against Nagoya to test the effectiveness of these weapons on a Japanese city. [12], The Japanese government's pre-war plans to protect the country from air attack focused on neutralizing enemy air bases. To assure that the B-25 was the correct aircraft, two were successfully flown off USS Hornet (CV-8) near Norfolk, on February 2, 1942. [147] LeMay's plan called for precision attacks on important industrial targets on days when the weather over Japan was clear and incendiary attacks guided by radar on overcast days. The naval aviators claimed to have destroyed 251 aircraft in their attacks on 9 August and damaged a further 141. [266] From 17 August the Twentieth Air Force was made responsible for supplying Allied prisoner of war camps in Japan, Korea and China until the prisoners were evacuated. [203] By the end of the war, VIIFighter Command had conducted 51 ground attack raids, of which 41 were considered successful. Japan's military and civil defenses were unable to stop the Allied attacks. On 15 April the IJAAF and IJN air defense units were belatedly placed under a single command when the Air General Army was formed under the command of General Masakazu Kawabe, but by this time the fighter force's effectiveness had been greatly reduced due to high rates of casualties in training accidents and combat. Doolittle Raid, Surprise attack on Tokyo by U.S. bombers in 1942 during World War II. It was decided to press for this at Yalta. [43][44][45] Additional anti-aircraft gun batteries and searchlight units were also established to protect major cities and military bases. When did the Doolittle Raid take place? [220] There was, however, no international treaty or instrument protecting a civilian population specifically from attack by aircraft at the time. [98], In light of the poor results of the precision bombing campaign and the success of the 25 February raid on Tokyo, and considering that many tons of incendiaries were now available to him, LeMay decided to begin firebombing attacks on Japan's main cities during early March 1945. [311] Mark Selden described the summer 1945 peak of the bombing campaign as "still perhaps unrivaled in the magnitude of human slaughter" and stated that the factors contributing to its intensity were a combination of "technological breakthroughs, American nationalism, and the erosion of moral and political scruples about killing of civilians, perhaps intensified by the racism that crystallized in the Pacific theater". The success of the mission depended on secrecy. The ultimate display of its versatility, however, came in April 1942, and the Doolittle Raid. [299] Compounding the effects of the air attacks, Japan's rice crop of 1945 failed. [21] Few air-raid shelters and other air defense facilities for civilians and industry were constructed prior to the Pacific War. B-25 bombers on the deck of USS Hornet before the Doolittle Raid. [94] The American military also attempted to develop "bat bombs", using incendiary bombs attached to bats dropped by aircraft to attack Japanese cities, but this project was abandoned in 1944. One raider, Corporal Leland D. Faktor, died while bailing out. IJAAF and IJN losses during the defense of Japan were 1,450 aircraft in combat and another 2,750 to other causes. The Twentieth Air Force's Chief of Staff, Brigadier General Lauris Norstad, was aware of the change in tactics though and provided support. [155], August 1945 began with further large-scale raids against Japanese cities. What was the Doolittle Raid? [45] Arnold relieved XXBomber Command's commander, Brigadier General Kenneth Wolfe, shortly after the raid on Yawata when he was unable to make follow-up attacks on Japan due to insufficient fuel stockpiles at the bases in China. In response to the American attacks, the IJN established the North-East Area Fleet in August 1943, and in November that year Japanese fighter strength in the Kurils and Hokkaid peaked at 260 aircraft. Since then, the goblets have been on permanent display at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force, at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. USAAF losses were 11 P-51s to enemy action and seven to other causes. [133] XXIBomber Command made further large-scale firebombing attacks against Tokyo on the nights of 23 and 25 May. Follow Chris on Twitter @historyauthor. The crew that landed in the Soviet Union escaped internment in 1943 when they were able to cross into Iran. [278] The reconstruction of 115 cities began in 1946, and this work was conducted in line with guidelines developed by the Japanese government. The court also ruled that any compensation should be allocated through the legislative, rather than judicial, process. For five days in 1943, a fashion fad was at the center of racial violence in Los Angeles. Moreover, the American bombers were capable of flying faster at high altitude than many Japanese fighters. Japanese positions in the Bonin Islands were normally able to provide an hour's warning of American raids and air raid sirens were sounded in cities threatened by attack. We strive for accuracy and fairness. [11] The USAAF subsequently attempted to send thirteen heavy bombers to China in March and April 1942 to attack the Japanese home islands. [103], The first firebombing attack in this campaigncodenamed Operation Meetinghousewas carried out against Tokyo on the night of 9/10 March, and proved to be the single most destructive air raid of the war. The raid demonstrated how vulnerable the Japanese home islands were to air attack . Speeding forward, the cruisers and carriers pushed deep into Japanese waters. Technician Fifth Grade Lewis Hall from Obetz, Ohio, was born March 2, 1895, and was 47 years old at the time of his action. [60], Overall, Operation Matterhorn was not successful. [181], Following the attacks on Hokkaido and northern Honshu TF38 sailed south and was reinforced by the main body of the British Pacific Fleet, which was designated Task Force37 and included another four fleet carriers. By Susan Zimmerman April 18, 1942, will forever live in American military glory as the date of the Jimmy Doolittle Raid on Tokyo--a gutsy, never-before-attempted combat mission to fly North American B-25 Mitchell bombers off the deck of an aircraft carrier and attack an enemy capital. Lieut. [130][131], After being released from supporting the Okinawa campaign, XXIBomber Command conducted an intensive firebombing campaign against Japan's main cities from mid-May.