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Curtis Emerson LeMay (November 15, 1906 – October 1, 1990) was a US Air Force general who implemented an effective but controversial strategic bombing campaign in the Pacific theater of World War II.
The primary mission of the 73d was the firebombing of Japan, flying low-level night missions dropping incendiary bombs over wide areas to destroy Japanese industry and military capability. 497th Bombardment Group 'A' over black square over aircraft number; later Large 'A', number moved to empennage.
Four aircraft were forced to abort due to mechanical issues, and the remaining 89 aircraft arrived over target at 0023 on 15 August in clear weather. Bombing continued to 0139 AM, from an altitude of 14,000 to 17,000 feet with 356 M17, 1372 M19 and 6321 M47 incendiary bombs dropped. The total amount of bombs dropped was thus 96,833 tons of ...
To maximize the effectiveness of the firebombing attacks, LeMay ordered the B-29s to fly at the low altitude of 5,000 feet (1,500 m) and bomb by night; this represented a significant change from the Command's standard tactics, which focused on high-altitude daylight bombing. As Japan's night fighter force was weak and the anti-aircraft ...
The Dresden raid was to be dwarfed by what was to hit Japan starting less than a month later—as initiated by General Curtis E. LeMay, a series of firebombing raids, launched with the first attack by some 334 American B-29 Superfortress heavy bombers on the night of March 9–10, 1945, codenamed Operation Meetinghouse, burned out some 16 ...
Inferno: The Fire Bombing of Japan, March 9 – August 15, 1945. Madison Books. ISBN 1-56833-149-5. Jablonski, Edward (1971). "Air War Against Japan". Airwar Outraged Skies/Wings of Fire. An Illustrated history of Air power in the Second World War. Doubleday. ASIN B000NGPMSQ. Lardas, Mark (2019). Japan 1944–45: LeMay's B-29 strategic bombing ...
The film then proceeds to the actual bombing of Japan, showing one of the B-29s in combat with Japanese fighters, dogfights between the escorting P-51s and Japanese aircraft and the destruction leveled on Tokyo by the B-29s' payload and subsequent strafing by the escort fighters.
In terms of damage per unit of cost, it surpassed strategic bombing and the United States submarine campaign. [3] Eventually most of the major ports and straits of Japan were repeatedly mined, severely disrupting Japanese logistics and troop movements for the remainder of the war with 35 of 47 essential convoy routes having to be abandoned.