Attack on Kure (March 1945)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The attack on Kure was an air raid conducted during the Pacific War by the
United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
on 19 March 1945. It targeted the remnants of the Japanese
Combined Fleet The was the main sea-going component of the Imperial Japanese Navy. Until 1933, the Combined Fleet was not a permanent organization, but a temporary force formed for the duration of a conflict or major naval maneuvers from various units norm ...
located in and near the Japanese city of
Kure is a port and major shipbuilding city situated on the Seto Inland Sea in Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. With a strong industrial and naval heritage, Kure hosts the second-oldest naval dockyard in Japan and remains an important base for the Japan ...
. The attack by 321 aircraft was unsuccessful, as no Japanese warships were sunk though several were damaged. Japanese forces struck the American fleet on the morning of 19 March, and crippled one aircraft carrier and badly damaged another.


Background

As part of the planning for the invasion of Okinawa, the United States Navy's
Fast Carrier Task Force The Fast Carrier Task Force (TF 38 when assigned to Third Fleet, TF 58 when assigned to Fifth Fleet), was the main striking force of the United States Navy in the Pacific War from January 1944 through the end of the war in August 1945. The task ...
(designated Task Force 58) was ordered to neutralize airfields in the Japanese home islands which could be used to attack the invasion force after the landings commenced on 1 April 1945. As part of these operations, the Task Force was also to attack
Imperial Japanese Navy The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrend ...
(IJN) warships sheltering in ports. Task Force 58 was the main striking element of the
United States Pacific Fleet The United States Pacific Fleet (USPACFLT) is a theater-level component command of the United States Navy, located in the Pacific Ocean. It provides naval forces to the Indo-Pacific Command. Fleet headquarters is at Joint Base Pearl Harbor ...
. It included 15 aircraft carriers, and was organised into four task groups. The March attacks would be the third time Task Force 58 had struck the Japanese home islands. The first had been a series of raids on airfields which took place on 16 and 17 February 1945, in which the American aviators claimed to have destroyed 341 Japanese aircraft in the air and 190 on the ground for the loss of 80 of their own to all causes. The second raid had been made against airfields in the
Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...
region on 25 February, in which the Americans claimed 46 Japanese aircraft while losing 16. After this attack, Task Force 58 returned to its base at
Ulithi Ulithi ( yap, Wulthiy, , or ) is an atoll in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean, about east of Yap. Overview Ulithi consists of 40 islets totaling , surrounding a lagoon about long and up to wide—at one of the larges ...
atoll to rest and prepare for further operations. By this stage of the war, the IJN was largely confined to port. Its major warships had suffered heavy casualties during 1944, and little fuel remained for those which survived. Most of the
Combined Fleet The was the main sea-going component of the Imperial Japanese Navy. Until 1933, the Combined Fleet was not a permanent organization, but a temporary force formed for the duration of a conflict or major naval maneuvers from various units norm ...
, the IJN's main combat force, was stationed at the major naval base at
Kure is a port and major shipbuilding city situated on the Seto Inland Sea in Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. With a strong industrial and naval heritage, Kure hosts the second-oldest naval dockyard in Japan and remains an important base for the Japan ...
on the Seto Inland Sea. This port was defended by hundreds of anti-aircraft guns; USN intelligence estimated that these included 160 large-caliber weapons and hundreds more smaller-caliber guns.


Prelude

Task Force 58 departed Ulithi on 14 March to commence the pre-invasion attacks on the Japanese home islands. Japanese forces located and tracked the Task Force as it approached, but were unsure whether it was a precursor to the landing on Okinawa or another attack against airfields. On 18 March Task Force 58's aircraft attacked 45 airfields on Kyushu. Few Japanese aircraft were found on the airfields, but large numbers attacked the American aircraft in flight. Other Japanese aircraft attacked Task Force 58, and lightly damaged the aircraft carriers and . The suffered more extensive damage after being hit by a bomb which killed 5 of her crew and wounded 26. A total of 110 Japanese aircraft were destroyed. American photo reconnaissance aircraft also operated over Japan on 18 March, and located concentrations of IJN warships at Kure and Kobe. The ships identified as being at Kure included the battleships ''Yamato'' and ''Haruna'' as well as three light aircraft carriers. The ships located on 18 March were selected as Task Force 58's main objective for the next day's attacks. Task Groups 58.1, 58.3 and 58.4 were to attack Kure, and Task Group 58.2 was to strike Kobe. Fighter aircraft were directed to sweep ahead of the American dive bombers and
torpedo bomber A torpedo bomber is a military aircraft designed primarily to attack ships with aerial torpedoes. Torpedo bombers came into existence just before the First World War almost as soon as aircraft were built that were capable of carrying the weight ...
s and attack Japanese aircraft. The main target specified for the attack on Kure was the port's oil storage tanks and other naval installations, but the strike coordinator, Commander George M. Ottinger, was authorised to redirect the USN aircraft against other targets.


Attacks


Japanese attacks on Task Force 58

Japanese aircraft were dispatched at dawn to strike Task Force 58, with their attacks being focused on Task Group 58.2. At 7:10 AM a Japanese aircraft arrived undetected over the Task Group, and hit the aircraft carrier with a single bomb. The bomb penetrated deep into the ship, and exploded in her galley. This killed many of the cooks and mess attendants who were preparing breakfast, and started fires. Due to efficient damage control, the fires were extinguished within 15 minutes, and the carrier resumed flying operations at 8:00 AM. However, 101 of her crew were killed and 269 wounded. A near-miss by a
kamikaze , officially , were a part of the Japanese Special Attack Units of military aviators who flew suicide attacks for the Empire of Japan against Allied naval vessels in the closing stages of the Pacific campaign of World War II, intending t ...
shortly after 8 AM caused minor damage. The aircraft carrier was also attacked. While she was launching her second strike of the day at 7:08 AM, the ship was struck by two bombs dropped from a Japanese aircraft which had also avoided detection. Huge fires rapidly broke out throughout ''Franklin'', and weapons which had been loaded onto her strike aircraft exploded as the fire reached them. ''Franklin''s crew managed to save the ship, but 724 were killed and 265 wounded. 32
Vought F4U Corsair The Vought F4U Corsair is an American fighter aircraft which saw service primarily in World War II and the Korean War. Designed and initially manufactured by Chance Vought, the Corsair was soon in great demand; additional production contract ...
fighters, 15 Grumman TBM Avenger torpedo bombers, 7
Curtiss SB2C Helldiver The Curtiss SB2C Helldiver is a dive bomber developed by Curtiss-Wright during World War II. As a carrier-based bomber with the United States Navy (USN), in Pacific theaters, it supplemented and replaced the Douglas SBD Dauntless. A few surviv ...
dive bombers, and 5
Grumman F6F Hellcat The Grumman F6F Hellcat is an American carrier-based fighter aircraft of World War II. Designed to replace the earlier F4F Wildcat and to counter the Japanese Mitsubishi A6M Zero, it was the United States Navy's dominant fighter in the second ha ...
fighters, 59 planes total, were destroyed by the Japanese attack.


Air to air combat

Task Force 58 began flying off fighter aircraft which were to sweep over the airfields around Kure at 6:18 AM on 19 March. As they approached Kure, the 20
Grumman F6F Hellcat The Grumman F6F Hellcat is an American carrier-based fighter aircraft of World War II. Designed to replace the earlier F4F Wildcat and to counter the Japanese Mitsubishi A6M Zero, it was the United States Navy's dominant fighter in the second ha ...
s of VBF-17 encountered 40 fighters from the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service's elite 343rd Kōkūtai. In a battle which lasted 25 minutes, six American and four Japanese fighters were shot down. Other engagements between American and Japanese fighters were fought around the Kure area throughout 19 March. Some of the Japanese pilots flew two sorties. The total casualties from this fighting, including the engagement between VBF-17 and the 343rd Kōkūtai, was 14 American and 25 Japanese aircraft shot down.


Attack on Kure

A large force of aircraft was dispatched to attack Kure. It was made up of 158
Curtiss SB2C Helldiver The Curtiss SB2C Helldiver is a dive bomber developed by Curtiss-Wright during World War II. As a carrier-based bomber with the United States Navy (USN), in Pacific theaters, it supplemented and replaced the Douglas SBD Dauntless. A few surviv ...
dive bombers and
Grumman TBF Avenger The Grumman TBF Avenger (designated TBM for aircraft manufactured by General Motors) is an American World War II-era torpedo bomber developed initially for the United States Navy and Marine Corps, and eventually used by several air and naval a ...
torpedo bombers, escorted by 163 Hellcats and
Vought F4U Corsair The Vought F4U Corsair is an American fighter aircraft which saw service primarily in World War II and the Korean War. Designed and initially manufactured by Chance Vought, the Corsair was soon in great demand; additional production contract ...
fighters. At least some of the Corsairs were armed with rockets which could be used to attack ground targets. This was almost as many aircraft as the IJN had employed in the
attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii ...
which brought the United States into the Pacific War on 7 December 1941. Ottinger arrived over Kure with the first wave of aircraft. After sighting multiple warships, he ordered that half of the bombers target ships instead of the planned attacks on shore installations. After further consideration, he directed all of the bombers to attack the three Japanese battleships, four aircraft carriers and ten other warships which were at anchor in the Kure area. 's air group commenced the attack on Kure. They concentrated on the aircraft carrier ''Ryūhō'', which was struck by three bombs and two rockets. These caused considerable damage, and killed 20 of her crew. Two of ''Bunker Hill''s Helldivers were shot down. All four of the battleships at Kure were targeted. ''Wasp''s air group focused on ''Hyūga'', but only hit her with a single bomb which killed about 40 sailors. Her sister ship ''Ise'' was struck by two bombs. The ''Haruna'', which was anchored in the roadstead off Kure, was hit by one bomb which caused little damage. The huge battleship ''Yamato'' was targeted by aircraft from ''Intrepid'', but only struck by a single bomb which exploded on her
bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...
. The other three aircraft carriers were also struck. The escort carrier ''Kaiyō'' was worst-hit, and caught fire after being attacked. This caused flooding which almost capsized the ship; to avoid this fate she was towed into shallow water. The aircraft carrier ''Katsuragi'' was hit by a bomb, and a near miss opened her hull and caused flooding. A single bomb struck the flight deck of her sister ship ''Amagi''. As well as the
capital ships The capital ships of a navy are its most important warships; they are generally the larger ships when compared to other warships in their respective fleet. A capital ship is generally a leading or a primary ship in a naval fleet. Strategic ...
, the light cruiser ''Ōyodo'' was heavily hit. The ship began flooding after being struck by three bombs, and was towed to
Etajima , also called , ''Nomijima'', ''Nomi Island'', or is an island in Hiroshima Bay located in southwestern Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. The mess with island name originates from the ancient (and possibly legendary) strait at now town . Geography Th ...
and beached to prevent her from sinking. Kure's anti-aircraft defenses fired on the American aircraft throughout the attack. This was the most intense anti-aircraft fire experienced by Task Force 58's aviators up to that time, and eleven Helldivers and two Avengers were shot down. These losses were lighter than what had been expected by most of the Task Force's officers, however.


Aftermath

The attack on Kure was unsuccessful. Despite the large size of the attack force and its achievement of air superiority, Task Force 58's aircraft achieved few hits on Japanese warships. No Japanese warships were sunk, and only an escort carrier and a light cruiser were badly damaged. The American airmen were disappointed with the results of the attack, but knew that they would strike Kure again. Ottinger and 35 other airmen were awarded the
Navy Cross The Navy Cross is the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps' second-highest military decoration awarded for sailors and marines who distinguish themselves for extraordinary heroism in combat with an armed enemy force. The medal is eq ...
for their roles in the attack. After completing the attacks on Kure and Kobe, Task Force 58 withdrew south. It flew further fighter sweeps over southern Kyushu on 19 and 20 March. Task Group 58.2 was attacked again by Japanese aircraft on the afternoon of 20 March, with destroyer being hit by a kamikaze and ''Enterprise''s flight deck being rendered unusable after she was accidentally struck by anti-aircraft fire from other American warships. On the afternoon of 21 March, 48 Japanese aircraft attempted to attack Task Force 58, but the raid was driven off with heavy casualties after it was intercepted by 150 American fighters. The damaged carriers ''Franklin'', ''Enterprise'' and ''Yorktown'' were subsequently detached, and departed for repairs. The damage to ''Franklin'' was so extensive that she never saw active use again. The Fast Carrier Task Force operated in Japanese waters for the remainder of the war. On 18 July 1945 it attacked Yokosuka. This raid was focused on the battleship ''Nagato'', which was lightly damaged. The Task Force and the
British Pacific Fleet The British Pacific Fleet (BPF) was a Royal Navy formation that saw action against Japan during the Second World War. The fleet was composed of empire naval vessels. The BPF formally came into being on 22 November 1944 from the remaining ships o ...
attacked Kure and the Inland Sea area again on 24 and 28 July. These raids sunk or crippled three battleships, three aircraft carriers, two
heavy cruiser The heavy cruiser was a type of cruiser, a naval warship designed for long range and high speed, armed generally with naval guns of roughly 203 mm (8 inches) in caliber, whose design parameters were dictated by the Washington Naval T ...
s and two other cruisers, and damaged several other warships. Allied casualties in this operation were high, with 126 aircraft being destroyed and 102 aircrew killed.


References


Citations


Works consulted

* * * {{cite book , last1=Young , first1=Edward M., title=American Aces Against the Kamikaze , date=2012 , publisher=Osprey Publishing , location=Oxford , isbn=9781849087452
Kure is a port and major shipbuilding city situated on the Seto Inland Sea in Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. With a strong industrial and naval heritage, Kure hosts the second-oldest naval dockyard in Japan and remains an important base for the Japan ...
Kure is a port and major shipbuilding city situated on the Seto Inland Sea in Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. With a strong industrial and naval heritage, Kure hosts the second-oldest naval dockyard in Japan and remains an important base for the Japan ...
Kure is a port and major shipbuilding city situated on the Seto Inland Sea in Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. With a strong industrial and naval heritage, Kure hosts the second-oldest naval dockyard in Japan and remains an important base for the Japan ...
Japan–United States military relations March 1945 events in Asia