Bombing of Aomori in World War II
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The on July 28, 1945, was part of the
strategic bombing Strategic bombing is a military strategy used in total war with the goal of defeating the enemy by destroying its morale, its economic ability to produce and transport materiel to the theatres of military operations, or both. It is a systematica ...
campaign waged by the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
against military and civilian targets and population centers during the Japan home islands campaign in the closing stages of
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
.


Background

Although the city of
Aomori is the capital city of Aomori Prefecture, in the Tōhoku region of Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 278,964 in 136,457 households, and a population density of 340 people per square kilometer spread over the city's total area of ...
lacked major targets of military significance and was a minor city in terms of population, it was a prefectural capital and a major regional transportation hub. Aomori Station was the northern terminus for the
Tōhoku Main Line The Tōhoku Main Line ( ja, 東北本線, ) is a long railway line in Japan operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). The line starts from Tokyo Station in Chiyoda, Tokyo and passes through such cities as Saitama, Utsunomiya, Fukush ...
and
Ōu Main Line The is a railway line in Japan, operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East). It connects Fukushima Station through Akita Station to Aomori Station. Since the opening of the Yamagata Shinkansen on July 1, 1992, the Fukushima–Yamag ...
railways, and Aomori Port was the primary base for the Seikan Ferry connecting
Honshu , historically called , is the largest and most populous island of Japan. It is located south of Hokkaidō across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyūshū across the Kanmon Straits. The island separ ...
with
Hokkaidō is Japan's second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel. The la ...
. In terms of military industry, the city had a factory owned by Toyo Seikan, which manufactured wings and landing gear for aircraft.


Air raids

On the night of July 27, 1945, two
Boeing B-29 Superfortress The Boeing B-29 Superfortress is an American four-engined propeller-driven heavy bomber, designed by Boeing and flown primarily by the United States during World War II and the Korean War. Named in allusion to its predecessor, the B-17 Fl ...
es dropped flares and a total of 60,000 leaflets on the city of Aomori. The leaflets, depicting a bomber dropping bombs, listed 11 cities (including Aomori), and stated that at least 5-6 of these cities would soon be destroyed, and urged the civilian population to leave. As in other cities, the Japanese government decreed that citizens must turn such leaflets over to the police without reading the contents on pain of 3 months imprisonment or a fine of 10
Yen The is the official currency of Japan. It is the third-most traded currency in the foreign exchange market, after the United States dollar (US$) and the euro. It is also widely used as a third reserve currency after the US dollar and the e ...
. Discussion of the contents could result in indefinite imprisonment, and the restrictions were to be enforced by the ''
kempeitai The , also known as Kempeitai, was the military police arm of the Imperial Japanese Army from 1881 to 1945 that also served as a secret police force. In addition, in Japanese-occupied territories, the Kenpeitai arrested or killed those suspecte ...
'' and local ''
tonarigumi The was the smallest unit of the national mobilization program established by the Japanese government in World War II. It consisted of units consisting of 10-15 households organized for fire fighting, civil defense and internal security. Histo ...
''.
On the night of July 28–29, 1945, 63 B-29 bombers from the
USAAF The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...
58th Bombardment Wing departed from
Iwo Jima Iwo Jima (, also ), known in Japan as , is one of the Japanese Volcano Islands and lies south of the Bonin Islands. Together with other islands, they form the Ogasawara Archipelago. The highest point of Iwo Jima is Mount Suribachi at high. ...
, with their flight routing via
Sendai is the capital Cities of Japan, city of Miyagi Prefecture, the largest city in the Tōhoku region. , the city had a population of 1,091,407 in 525,828 households, and is one of Japan's 20 Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, desig ...
and the
Oga Peninsula The Oga Peninsula (男鹿半島 ''Oga-hantō'') is a rugged peninsula which projects west into the Sea of Japan from the coast of Akita in northern Honshū, the main island of Japan. Politically it coincides with the city of Oga. At the base of ...
, approaching Aomori via Ajigasawa village. One aircraft was forced back, but the remaining 63 arrived over Aomori at 22:10 and commenced a firebombing attack with E-48 500 lbs
incendiary bombs Incendiary weapons, incendiary devices, incendiary munitions, or incendiary bombs are weapons designed to start fires or destroy sensitive equipment using fire (and sometimes used as anti-personnel weaponry), that use materials such as napalm, th ...
on the central part of the city from an altitude of 5000 feet, lasting until 23:10. The bombers released a total of 83,000 new M74 incendiary devices on the largely wooden city. The resultant firestorm destroyed most of the city. The estimated civilian casualties in the July 29 raid was an estimated 1,767 killed and 18,045 homes destroyed. Efforts by citizens and civil defense authorities to extinguish the
napalm Napalm is an incendiary mixture of a gelling agent and a volatile petrochemical (usually gasoline (petrol) or diesel fuel). The name is a portmanteau of two of the constituents of the original thickening and gelling agents: coprecipitated al ...
-filled M74 bomblets using traditional water bucket brigades and fire trucks contributed to the casualties and extent of damage. A year after the war, the
United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...
's
Strategic Bombing Survey (Pacific War) The United States Strategic Bombing Survey (USSBS) was a written report created by a board of experts assembled to produce an impartial assessment of the effects of the Anglo-American strategic bombing of Nazi Germany during the European theatre o ...
reported that 88 percent of the city had been totally destroyed. However, the Toyo Seikan factory was undamaged.Wainstock. ''The Decision to Drop the Atomic Bomb''. Page 9 The B-29 bombers continued on
Tinian Tinian ( or ; old Japanese name: 天仁安島, ''Tenian-shima'') is one of the three principal islands of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Together with uninhabited neighboring Aguiguan, it forms Tinian Municipality, one of th ...
in the
Mariana Islands The Mariana Islands (; also the Marianas; in Chamorro: ''Manislan Mariånas'') are a crescent-shaped archipelago comprising the summits of fifteen longitudinally oriented, mostly dormant volcanic mountains in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, betw ...
without damage or loss.


See also

*
Strategic bombing during World War II World War II (1939–1945) involved sustained strategic bombing of railways, harbours, cities, workers' and civilian housing, and industrial districts in enemy territory. Strategic bombing as a military strategy is distinct both from close ...
*
Air raids on Japan Air raids conducted by Allied forces on Japan during World War II caused extensive destruction to the country's cities and killed between 241,000 and 900,000 people. During the first years of the Pacific War these attacks were limited to the D ...
* Evacuations of civilians in Japan during World War II


References

* * * * * * * * * *青森大空襲の記録 次代への証言 写真集. 青森空襲を記録する会 (1995)


Notes


External links


Pacific War Chronology
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aomori Bombing of Aomori
Aomori is the capital city of Aomori Prefecture, in the Tōhoku region of Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 278,964 in 136,457 households, and a population density of 340 people per square kilometer spread over the city's total area of ...
Japan in World War II
Aomori is the capital city of Aomori Prefecture, in the Tōhoku region of Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 278,964 in 136,457 households, and a population density of 340 people per square kilometer spread over the city's total area of ...
Aomori is the capital city of Aomori Prefecture, in the Tōhoku region of Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 278,964 in 136,457 households, and a population density of 340 people per square kilometer spread over the city's total area of ...
World War II strategic bombing of Japan 1945 in Japan Firebombings in Japan Aomori (city) Japan–United States military relations