PROPOSAL FOR THE BOMBING ATTACK ON TOKYO
Subject: B-25 Special Project
To: Commanding General, Army Air Forces
The purpose of this special project is to bomb and fire the industrial center of Japan.
It is anticipated mat this not only will cause confusion and impede production but will undoubtedly facilitate operation against Japan in other theaters due to their probable withdrawal of troops for the purpose of defending the home country.
An action of this kind is most desirable now due to the psychological effect on the American public, our allies, and our enemies.
The method contemplated is to bring carrier-borne bombers to within 400 to 500 miles (all distances mentioned will be in statute miles) of the coast of Japan, preferably to the south-southeast. They will then take off from the carrier deck and proceed directly to selected targets in the Tokyo-Yokohama, Nagoya, and Osaka-Kobe areas.
Simultaneous bombings of these areas is contemplated, with the bombers coming in up waterways from the southeast and, after dropping their bombs, returning in the same direction. After clearing the Japanese outside coastline a sufficient distance, a general westerly course will be set for one or more of the following airports in China: Chuchow, Chuchow (Lishui), Yushan, and/or Chienou. Chuchow is about 70 miles inland and 200 miles to the south-southwest of Shanghai.
After refueling, the airplanes will proceed to the strong Chinese air base at Chungking, about 800 miles distant, and from there to such ultimate objective as may, at that time, be indicated.
The greatest nonstop distance that any airplane will have to fly is 2,000 miles.
Eighteen B-25B (North American medium bomber) airplanes will be employed in this raid. Each will carry about 1,100 gallons of gasoline, which assures a range of 2,400 miles at 5,000 feet in still air.
Each bomber will carry two 500-pound demolition bombs and as near as possible to 1,000 pounds of incendiaries. The demolition bombs will be dropped first and then the incendiaries.
The extra gasoline will be carried in a 275-gallon auxiliary leakproof tank in the top of the bomb bay and a 175-gallon flexible rubber tank in the passageway above the bomb bay. It is anticipated that the gasoline from this top tank will be used up and the tank flattened out or rolled up and removed prior to entering the combat zone. This assures mat the airplane will be fully operational and minimizes the fire and explosion hazard characteristic of a nearly empty tank.
In all other respects the airplanes are conventional. The work of installing the required additional tankage is being done by Mid-Continent Airlines at Minneapolis. All production and installation work is progressing according to schedule and the 24 airplanes (six spares) should be completely converted by March 15.
Extensive range and performance tests will be conducted on airplane number 1 while the others are being converted. A short period will be required to assemble and give special training to the crews. The training will include teamwork in bombing, gunnery, navigation, flying, short takeoff, and at least one carrier takeoff for each pilot.
If the crews are selected promptly from men familiar with their jobs and the B-25B airplane, the complete unit should be ready for loading on the carrier by April 1.
General operational instructions will be issued just before takeoff from the carrier.
Due to the greater accuracy of daylight bombing, a daylight raid is contemplated. The present concept of the project calls for a night takeoff from the carrier and arrival over objectives at dawn. Rapid refueling at the landing points will permit arrival at Chungking before dark.
A night raid will be made if, due to last-minute information received from our intelligence section or other source, a daylight raid is definitely inadvisable. The night raid should be made on a clear night, moonlight if Japan is blacked out, moonless if it is not.
All available pertinent information regarding targets and defenses will be obtained from A-2, G-2, and other existing sources.
The Navy has already supervised takeoff tests made at Norfolk, Virginia, using B-25B bombers carrying loads of 23,000 pounds, 26,000 pounds, and 29,000 pounds. These tests indicate that no difficulty need be anticipated in taking off from the carrier deck with a gross load of around 31,000 pounds.*
The Navy will be charged with providing a carrier (probably the Hornet), with loading and storing the airplanes, and with delivering them to the takeoff position.
The Chemical Warfare Service is designing and preparing special incendiary bomb clusters in order to assure that the maximum amount that limited space permits, up to 1,000 pounds per airplane, may be carried. Forty-eight of these clusters will be ready for shipment from Edgewood Arsenal [Maryland] by March 15.
About 20,000 U.S. gallons of 100-octane aviation gasoline and 600 gallons of lubricating oil will be laid down at Chuchow and associated fields. All other supplies and necessary emergency repair equipment will be carried on the airplanes.
First Lieutenant Harry W. Howze, now with the Air Service Command and formerly with the Standard Oil Company of New Jersey, will be charged with making arrangements for the fuel caches in China. He will work through A-2 and A-4 and with Colonel Claire Chennault, a former Air Corps officer and now aviation advisor to the Chinese government. Colonel Chennault should assign a responsible American or a Chinese who speaks English to physically check and assure that the supplies are in place. This man should also be available to assist the crews in servicing the airplanes. That the supplies are in place can be indicated by suitable radio code signal. Work on placing supplies must start at once.
Shortly before the airplanes arrive, the proper Chinese agencies should be advised that the airplanes are coming soon, but the inference will be that they are flying up from the south in order to stage a raid on Japan from which they plan to return to the same base.
Radio signals from the bombing planes immediately after they drop their bombs may be used to indicate arrival at gassing points some six or seven hours later.
Care must be exercised to see that the Chinese are advised just in time, as any information given to the Chinese may be expected to fall into Japanese hands and a premature notification would be fatal to the project.
An initial study of meteorological conditions indicates that the sooner the raid is made the better will be the prevailing weather conditions. The weather will become increasingly unfavorable after the end of April. Weather was considered largely from the point of view of avoiding morning fog over Tokyo and other targets, low overcast over Chuchow and Chungking, icing, and strong westerly winds.
If possible, daily weather predictions or anticipated weather conditions at Chungking and the coast should be sent, at a specified time, in suitable code, in order to assist the meteorologist on the carrier in analyzing his forecasts.
Lieutenant Colonel J. H. Doolittle, Air Corps, will be in charge of the preparations for and will be in personal command of the project. Other flight personnel will, due to the considerable hazard incident to such a mission, be volunteers.
Each airplane will carry its normal complement of five crew members: pilot, copilot, bombardier-navigator, radio operator, and gunner-mechanic.
One crew member will be a competent meteorologist and one an experienced navigator. All navigators will be trained in celestial navigation.
Two ground liaison officers will be assigned. One will remain on the mainland and the other on the carrier.
At least three crew members will speak Chinese—one on each of the target units.
Should the Soviets be willing to accept delivery of 18 B-25B airplanes, on lease-lend, at Vladivostok, our problem would be greatly simplified and conflict with the Halverson project avoided.
* I did not know until years later that the third airplane had not participated in the trials.