noffsinger Chapter 784 The bombing begins
Chapter 784 The bombing begins
Because the United States army has attached great importance to seizing air and sea supremacy in the theater in all previous operations, and then relying on its absolute superiority in naval and air forces, after it has truly mastered air and sea supremacy over the Ryukyu Islands, it cut off the Japanese headquarters from providing various support to the Japanese garrison on Okinawa Island from the mainland.
Moreover, the U.S. military only began the landing operation after providing sufficient sea and air firepower support to the landing forces. To this end, the U.S. military dispatched aircraft carrier formations and B-29 heavy bombers of the Strategic Air Force to repeatedly attack Japanese air bases in Kyushu and other places in Japan.
However, the Japanese army built many airports in Kyushu, and these airports were scattered. In addition, the Japanese army's homeland anti-aircraft firepower provided strong cover, which meant that the United States' B-29 heavy bombers' air raids on airports in Kyushu, Japan, were unable to completely suppress the Japanese aircraft.
Therefore, the aircraft carrier formation of the United States Navy had to stay in the waters of Okinawa Island for a long time, acting as a barrier for the United States landing formation, and suffered huge losses under the crazy attacks of the Japanese Kamikaze Special Attack Force aircraft.
In the Battle of Okinawa, the United States military was relatively successful in its logistical support work during the battle. You should know that the total number of troops participating in the battle was as high as more than 500,000 officers and soldiers, and the material supplies of all participating troops, from airplanes, cannons to explosives and gasoline, and even the soldiers' toilet paper, Coca-Cola, ice cream and chewing gum, everything was shipped from the United States across the Pacific Ocean.
This workload was astonishing and huge, and the United States' transport fleet played an indispensable role in it. The United States' transport fleet risked being sunk by Japanese submarines and aircraft, overcame all kinds of difficulties in long-distance voyages in humid and hot waters, and continuously delivered supplies to the front line of the Okinawa battlefield, making outstanding contributions to the victory of the United States army in the Battle of Okinawa.
In addition, the U.S. military first captured and occupied the Kerama Islands and built the archipelago into a logistics forward base for the U.S. military's attack on Okinawa Island, providing nearby repairs, supplies and rest for the U.S. naval ships participating in the war. This was also very wise and effective.
The Battle of Okinawa and the Battle of Iwo Jima that took place not long ago made the U.S. military deeply understand what kind of frenzied resistance the Japanese army would face if it were to carry out landing operations on the Japanese mainland. The U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff estimated that if the U.S. military began landing operations on the Japanese mainland, it would pay the price of one million casualties.
Faced with such a horrific predicted number of casualties among officers and soldiers, the US government finally decided to use the newly developed atomic bomb against Japan, hoping to end the war as soon as possible.
In fact, as early as after the Pearl Harbor incident in 25, the U.S. military sent B- bombers to bomb oil depots, factories and military facilities in Tokyo, Yokohama, Nagoya and Kobe, Japan.
However, the US military's bombing attack on Japan was mainly a symbolic mission, and for nearly two years, the US military did not have the conditions to organize a strategic bombing of the Japanese mainland.
Later, when the US military successfully manufactured the B-29 Superfortress bomber, the US military began to be able to carry out substantial strategic bombing on the Japanese mainland.
The B-29 heavy bomber equipped by the U.S. Army can reach a speed of 29 kilometers per hour, a flight altitude of more than meters, a cruising range of kilometers, a strike range of kilometers, and can carry bombs weighing up to kilograms. The Axis fighters rarely fly to such high altitudes, and even if they can, they cannot catch up with the speed of the B- heavy bomber.
The first time the United States Air Force used B-29 heavy bombers to bomb the Japanese mainland was on June 29, . Sixty-eight B- heavy bombers of the United States Air Force took off from Chengdu Airport in China, with the goal of bombing the Yawata Steel Plant in Kyushu, Japan.
However, this time the bombing by the B-29 heavy bomber group of the United States Air Force did not cause much damage to the Yawata Steel Plant in Kyushu, Japan. Only forty-seven of the sixty-eight B-29 heavy bombers dispatched by the United States Air Force hit the target, four B-29 heavy bombers were unable to take off due to mechanical failure, four B-29 heavy bombers crashed, six B-29 heavy bombers dropped the bombs they were carrying on the way due to mechanical failure, one B-29 heavy bomber was shot down by the Japanese air defense force, and most of the remaining B-29 heavy bombers only bombed the secondary target of the Yawata Steel Plant in Kyushu, Japan.
At that time, the U.S. army had not yet captured the Mariana Islands, Iwo Jima and other places as forward military bases for the U.S. Air Force's B-29 heavy bombers. If the U.S. Air Force's B-29 heavy bombers took off from airports controlled by the Chinese government, there would be supply problems.
Moreover, because the distance was too far, the B-29 heavy bombers taking off from the airports controlled by the Chinese government had to reduce their bomb load so that the B-29 heavy bombers could load more fuel. Therefore, the B-29 heavy bombers deployed at the Chinese government airports could only launch limited bombing attacks on the Japanese mainland.
It was not until the U.S. military captured the islands of the Mariana Islands using island-hopping tactics that the U.S. 29th Air Force was incorporated into the U.S. st Bomber Command and began preparations for a large-scale bombing of Japan's Honshu Island using B- heavy bombers.
On November 29, , the U.S. Air Force dispatched B- heavy bombers to attack Tokyo, Japan, preparing to carry out a precision bombing of the Japanese mainland during the day.
When the B-29 heavy bombers flying over the Japanese mainland began dropping bombs at an altitude of 29 meters, only about 29 B- heavy bombers found the bombing target. As a result, less than % of the bombs hit the intended target. In the end, the bombing of the Japanese mainland by B- heavy bombers organized by the United States Air Force only caused minor damage to a Japanese aircraft manufacturing plant.
The U.S. Air Force once used B-29 heavy bombers to carry out daytime precision bombing tactics on the European battlefield. However, the weather conditions in Japan were not suitable for daytime precision bombing tactics.
In addition, Japan's military industry is completely different from Germany's in Europe. Japan's military industry mainly produces parts and prefabricated parts in small workshops scattered in residential areas, and then they are sent to large factories for final assembly.