The Most Destructive Bombing Raid in History - Tokyo - Operation Meetinghouse

The island of Saipan is bustling with activity at 5:35 p.m. on the 9th of March, 1945. All eyes in the control

March, 1945. All eyes in the control tower at Isley airfield are on the first aircraft in line on the runway. A B29

Superfortress heavy bomber of the 73rd bombardment wing. One minute later, a

bombardment wing. One minute later, a green flare from the control tower arcs into the late afternoon sky. The

135,000lb Superfortress rolls down the runway constructed out of crushed coral and lifts off, passing over American servicemen, taking in the sight from the

beach, following a 289 B29s from the 73rd and 313th bombardment wings, which climb into the sky one by one.

125 mi away, 56 Superforts from the 314th Bombwing are taking off from their base on the island of Guang.

The target for tonight's mission is the capital of the Empire of Japan, Tokyo.

This is the beginning of Operation Meeting House, a firebombing raid intended to burn the world's third largest city to the ground. Thanks to

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Second World War is entering its final phase as Imperial Japan is in retreat.

Japan has been at war for the past 8 years and has seen its once vast empire crumble under relentless attacks by the Allies. As of now, the United States is

Allies. As of now, the United States is preparing to invade the island of Okinawa, which represents the last line of defense before the Japanese home islands.

Despite the death of millions of its citizens, the Japanese military continues to offer fanatical resistance.

As a sign of how desperate the situation has become, the Allies are being confronted with large-scale kamicazi attacks, which involve volunteer pilots crashing their bomb-laden aircraft into

US and Royal Navy warships.

American Marines have suffered shocking casualties trying to storm the island of Ewima, a battle which began almost a month ago and is still ongoing despite the hopeless situation of the Japanese

defenders.

Like in the European theater, the United States hopes that a determined strategic bombing campaign against Japan's key war industries will hasten the end of the conflict. The seizure of Guam, Saipan,

conflict. The seizure of Guam, Saipan, and Tinan during the Mariana Islands campaign the previous year put the home islands within range of Boeing B-29 Superfortresses, the most advanced and

expensive aircraft ever built by the US military to this point.

Under the command of Brigadier General Haywood Hansel, the newly formed 21st US Army Air Force Bomber Command began bombing the Japanese home islands on the 24th of November 1944.

Hansel is a veteran of the European Air War where he helped plan the Schwinfort Reaganburg mission along with Operation Tidal Wave and is a firm believer in daylight precision bombing of enemy targets.

However, Hansel and the rest of the USAF quickly learned that fighting a bomber war in the Pacific is far different to the one they fought over Europe. The

airfield facilities in the Maranas are primitive compared to the Eighth Air Force's modern bases in England, which complicates logistics for these missions. The B29 is also going through

missions. The B29 is also going through a troubleshooting process as air crew struggle to master their new aircraft.

Lack of intelligence on Japan's industries, problems in properly training air crew, and internal resistance to Hanzel strategy of daylight bombing all proved to be

serious difficulties for US 21st Bomber Command. As a result, the missions are

Command. As a result, the missions are not as successful as hoped. All weather

during the winter of 1944 to 45 scrubs many bombing rates, but the biggest hindrance is the powerful polar jetream.

This intense wind current lies directly above Japan, which makes it even more difficult to carry out high alitude precision bombing than it already was.

Frustrated with the lack of progress and Hansel's refusal to consider alternatives to precision bombing, commander of the Army Air Force's Hap Arnold relieves him of command on the

6th of January 1945 and installs Major General Curtis Lame as the new leader of 21st Bomber Command. Lame is also a veteran of the European theater, but is

a pragmatist at heart, unlike Hanzel, whose moral objection to area bombing cost him his command. The 38-year-old

Lameé is a cold and determined man who shows no fear or remorse in combat. In

Europe, he earned the enduring respect of the men under his command by flying with them on the most dangerous missions.

Lame initially continues Hanzel's strategy of precision daylight bombing while experimenting with new tactics and weapons, especially the widespread use of incendiary bombs. A 19th of February

area bombing raid on Tokyo shows promise and destroys around 28,000 residences.

But an attempted precision attack on an aircraft production facility in the Japanese capital on the 4th of March is deemed a failure. Aware that he has to show results soon or he will be next in

line to go, Lame cancels all precision strikes the following day and goes back to the drawing board. He is intrigued with a proposal made by Brigadier General Emmett O'Donnell, the commander

of the 73rd Bombwing. O'Donnell had

clashed with Haywood Hanzel about precision bombing and advocated firebombing raids at night. O'Donnell

has argued that it would be safer for the air crews and the B29s can save fuel by flying in looser formations.

Lame decides to take O'Donnell's proposal a step further. On the 6th of March, he summons his wing commanders and their staff to a briefing in Saipan.

Lame announces, "I'm going to send you in at 5,000 ft and without guns, gunners, or ammunition. B29s have been bombing at 25,000 ft in their missions

over Japan so far in the war and Lame believes attacking at such a low altitude will be more accurate by eliminating the jetream problem and offers the element of surprise.

One of the stuntwing commanders replies, "I don't know if we can convince our crews that this isn't a suicide mission." Lame responds plainly, "It's

mission." Lame responds plainly, "It's your job to convince your crews. The

mission will begin on the afternoon of the 9th of March. Whereas previous raids targeted Japan's aviation industry, much like the point blank directive was intended to destroy the German Luftvafa,

Lame is taking aim at Tokyo's dense residential neighborhoods to the east of the Imperial Palace. While on the surface this is a straightforward area bombing raid against civilians and the general war economy, similar to the

firebombing attacks by the RAF in Europe, Tokyo's workingclass burers also play a more direct role in Japan's war industry. Historian Robert Do writes in

industry. Historian Robert Do writes in his book Mission to Tokyo. Nearly every

Japanese family home was a cog in the Japanese war machine. Many weapons and tools employed by Japanese forces were the products of a home-based cottage industry. These districts were packed

industry. These districts were packed with light industries called shadow factories that produced pre-fabricated war materials destined for Japanese aircraft factories. This cottage

aircraft factories. This cottage industry is the stated target of the raid, but also a convenient justification for directly attacking the civilian population.

The American air crews who have taken off from their bases on Saipan and Guam have settled in for the 7-hour and 15-minute flight to Tokyo. Unlike

previous raids, the B-29s are flying in a long procession almost one by one to the target rather than tight combat boxes. Lame is gambling that the two

boxes. Lame is gambling that the two Japanese night fighter squadrons based near Tokyo are combat ineffective, eliminating the needs for guns or gunners. He is acting on intelligence

gunners. He is acting on intelligence from American P-51 pilots who note that grounded Japanese aircrafts do not ignite when strafed, indicating they are

unfueled. The Superfortresses are able

unfueled. The Superfortresses are able to stretch their fuel range without the extra weight and by flying at a lower altitude to fly under the oncoming jetream winds.

Guiding the 400m long bomber stream are four B-29s which took off 25 minutes before the main force and are continuously broadcasting a radio homing

signal to lead the bombers to Tokyo.

Lame is taking a massive gamble in sending the bombers at such a low altitude and many of the B-29 crewmen are unhappy with Lame forbidden from flying combat missions due to his

knowledge of the Manhattan project.

General Thomas Power is the leader.

Power faced outrage at his initial briefing on Guam. One airman shouts at Power, "This is stupid. It's suicide.

Surprise may help us with the fighters.

It won't help us with the flack." Pilot

Ben Robertson remembered, "We were dumbfounded and wondered if command had gone crazy. The tactics to be used on

gone crazy. The tactics to be used on this mission were a complete departure from the design objectives of the airplane and to us tantamount to a suicide strike."

suicide strike." Major Ralph Nutter later said, "For almost a week, most of us wondered if we were planning the greatest disaster in

aviation history. Nonetheless, Power

aviation history. Nonetheless, Power reassures his men. I would not lead this mission, and we would not be sending you if we thought it was an unreasonable risk.

Despite their reservations, not one pilot has refused to fly tonight.

Meanwhile, the citizens of Tokyo struggle to stay warm. The temperature

has not climbed above freezing for 45 consecutive days, and heating is in short supply with coal and wood requisitioned for the war effort. With

mega supplies of the rabies vaccine, all dogs in Tokyo are hunted down and euthanized along with every animal in the Ueno Zoo. Even the Mayi newspaper

has shrunk to just two pages due to a paper shortage. Although the Japanese

paper shortage. Although the Japanese government and military is committed to fighting on, the mood among civilians is far different. Filipino diplomat Leon

far different. Filipino diplomat Leon Maria Guerrero writes in his diary, "The Japanese, fantastic as it sounds, are indifferent to the war. Divided by petty quarrels, bewildered by the disaster

that is overwhelming them, they have lost touch with the government and lost faith.

Yet, life goes on in the capital city in Fukugawa. Shizuku Nishio is only hours

Fukugawa. Shizuku Nishio is only hours away from her sixth birthday when she settles into bed along with her cousin visiting from the countryside.

A 12-year-old Yoko Ono is doing the same in the wealthy district of Azabu on the other side of the city. At 10:30 p.m.

local time, Japanese radio announces that American aircraft have been spotted approaching the home islands from the south. Many civilians spring into action

south. Many civilians spring into action to prepare for firefighting, only for the radio to quickly backtrack, stating that the aircraft are not headed for Japan.

While most relax and return to bed, police photographer Cooyo Ishiawa is hesitant. As the city's point person for

hesitant. As the city's point person for documenting bomb damage, Ishiawa knows that it's unusual for Tokyo to go five consecutive days without a raid.

Something isn't quite right.

The American bomber stream is now less than 90 minutes from the city. They have

been spotted by Japanese picket boats, which is what prompted the radio announcement, but they were erroneously believed to have turned back. Captain

Charles Phillips recalled, "We flew in absolute darkness and with no light showing." Hundreds of B29s were all in

showing." Hundreds of B29s were all in the same general area, all headed in the same direction at approximately the same speed. None of us knew where the others

speed. None of us knew where the others were.

At just past midnight Tokyo time, the Japanese home islands come into view.

Picket boats bobbing offshore fire flares into the sky which are followed by a smattering of anti-aircraft traces, but the bombers are uninhibited.

Continuing to the target, the bomber stream reaches the Bozo Peninsula at the entrance to Tokyo Bay and splits up. The

56B9s of the 314th Bombwing fly north across the peninsula until they will turn west at the Chiba Prefecture.

The larger formation from the 73rd and 313th bomb wings turn and follow the Pacific coastline before they will also turn west around the town of Kujikuri.

279 B29s remain with 66 having turned back due to mechanical or fuel problems. At this time, Japanese radar posts finally detect the incoming raid, but

the operators believe it to be a reconnaissance mission. Confused by

reconnaissance mission. Confused by their sudden appearance at low altitude, the four B29s with their homing beacons have been orbiting Tokyo for over 20 minutes, but anti-aircraft fire finally

commences as the 56th bomb wing makes its westward turn at its last initial point.

Just as Lame predicted, the air defenses around Tokyo are completely unprepared for the low-level strike. No night

fighters have taken off and Japanese anti-aircraft weaponry is incapable of putting up the same dense flack fire seen over heavily defended German cities. The first Pathfinder squadron in

cities. The first Pathfinder squadron in line approaches the primary aiming point, the Ward of Asakuza.

Visibility is good with a crosswind of 45 to 67 mph coming from the southeast.

At 12:08 a.m. Tokyo time, the Pathfinder B29s release 122 M47 incendentary bombs each, which detonate in the heart of Asukuza in a large X shape to mark the

aim point.

Buyers quickly break out in the workingclass ward, which has a population density of over 135,000 people per square mile.

Lame and the mission planners have chosen a rectangular target area 4 m by 3 mi with the Sumida River running through the middle of it, naming it incendury zone 1.

Around 1 million people live in this comparatively tiny area, making it the most congested urban area in the world.

The M47 incendiary bomb has been chosen as the munition loadout of choice for the Pathfinders to mark the targets due to its penetrating power. Since 1943,

the USAF has been testing different types of incenduries at the Dugway Proving Ground in Utah against Japanese-style domestic buildings. The

100B M47 is good at punching through the thin tile or sheet metal roots which make up 80% of all dwellings in Japanese cities.

Japanese civilians in incendiary zone 1 are awoken by the bombing, confused after being told that there would be no attack on this night.

Within 2 minutes, the Johto ward is already burning fiercely, and the air raid sirens still have not been activated. Police photographer Coyo

activated. Police photographer Coyo Ishiawa races to the roof of the headquarters to watch the first wave of Pathfinders mark their targets for the rest of the raid. He can already see

large fires casting a pale glow over the blacked out city and rushes to the police station chief for permission to take a closer look. "Are you sure you want to go?" his boss asks, to which

Ishikawa responds. The air raid tonight

Ishikawa responds. The air raid tonight is different. The section chief replies,

is different. The section chief replies, "Be careful. Don't die." Ishiawa jumps

"Be careful. Don't die." Ishiawa jumps into his police Chevrolet and races off to the affected areas.

The araided sirens finally begin wailing at 12:15 a.m., 7 minutes after the bombs began falling.

This critical delay will prove deadly for tens of thousands of civilians.

Once the Pathfinders have completed their work, the rest of the Superfortresses arrived to deliver the main concentration of bombing.

The main force of B-29s are dropping 500 lb M69 incendiary canisters which disperse 38 smaller bomblelets containing napal.

Whereas the M47 detonates on impact, the M69 explodes after 3 to 5 seconds and showers the surrounding area with flaming napal.

A report from the Dougway proving grounds concluded the M69 bomb was the most effective of the bombs tested and showed itself to be a potent weapon against Japanese construction.

Unlike German households which are usually built with brick and mortar, Japanese urban dwellings are constructed from wood, bamboo, and paper. American

strategists closely studied the 1923 Great Kanto earthquake which started large fires and killed tens of thousands in Tokyo.

Despite efforts by city officials to create more fire brakes by building parks and large avenues, 98% of the city is still composed of combustible material.

Japanese air defense has been called flat-footed. Only a handful of search

flat-footed. Only a handful of search lights sweep the skies looking for American bombers. And while

American bombers. And while anti-aircraft fire is heavy, it is also inaccurate.

Night fighters are scrambled, but very few actually find the American bombers.

B29 crewman will later report only 40 attacks by Japanese fighters on this mission and no superfortresses are shot down by enemy pilots.

Lame's directive that the B29s should bomb individually and not as a group is also confusing Japanese air defense which is poorly coordinated and ineffective.

The US strategic bombing survey concluded after the war that not only were these defenses inadequate, but certain technological advances used by the Germans and ourselves were not

evident. In the most vital defensive

evident. In the most vital defensive effort that against air attack on his homeland, the Japanese failed.

Even worse is the negligence of Tokyo's city government in preparing for bombing raids. Unlike other Japanese cities,

raids. Unlike other Japanese cities, Tokyo's wards are not coordinated by air defense neighborhood associations, which disseminate instructions on how to fight fires and treat injured victims. Air

shelter construction is also wfully inadequate, with most shelters being mere trenches in the ground. Home

Affairs Minister Genki Arbe later said, "The reason we had no definite policy of air raid shelter protection is that we did not unduly wish to alarm our citizens concerning the necessity for

underground shelters as we feared it would interfere with normal routine life and have some effect on war production.

Tokyo's fire service is composed of just 8,100 firefighters compared to 10,000 for New York City, which is under no threat of aerial bombing. Due to chronic fuel shortages, more than half of the

firefighting vehicles are out of service. The fires in incendiary zone 1

service. The fires in incendiary zone 1 are completely out of control within half an hour. Although Japanese

anti-aircraft guns are able to bring down three B-29s over the city, many of these gun positions are overrun by flames which force the crews to abandon their posts. A firestorm, the same

their posts. A firestorm, the same meteorological phenomenon seen in Hamburg in 1943 and Dresston just a month ago, is building in the heart of Tokyo. However, this firestorm is much

Tokyo. However, this firestorm is much worse and growing at an astonishing rate. The gusting wind which battered

rate. The gusting wind which battered the capital before the bombing is now fanning the flames to other structures and the freezing temperatures without any humidity has turned Tokyo's

combustible neighborhoods into a dry tinder box. I above the confilration

tinder box. I above the confilration General Power watches and notes the spread of the fires from his command B29. He later said, "I watched block

B29. He later said, "I watched block after block go up in flames until the Holocaust had spread into a sthing, swirling ocean of fire, engulfing the city below for miles in every

direction." Police photographer Coyo

direction." Police photographer Coyo Ishiawa is driving through the city towards the swirling flames, occasionally being overtaken by what few emergency vehicles the city can spare.

at the moment. He arrives at the foot of the Uruko Bridge where panic-stricken residents fleeing the Hondo and Fukugawa wards are streaming across the Sumida

River. He later noted in his diary, the

River. He later noted in his diary, the congestion was indescribable. He

abandons his police Chevy on the side of the road and makes his way to the other side of the river on foot, fighting against the endless horde of people fleeing the other direction. A police

officer attempting to maintain order is pushed aside as men, women, and children battle to reach safety. The bridge is strewn with abandoned carts and the belongings of those seeking refuge.

Ishiawa finally makes his way to the other side of the river and runs towards the police station as the flames grow even larger.

Shizuko Nishio turned 6 years old at midnight and was awoken by her father only minutes later. "Wake up! Wake up!

Go into the shelter!" he shouts before rushing off to his assigned air raid aid station. Nishio's father has built a

station. Nishio's father has built a much sturdier shelter than most other residents. Nishio along with seven

residents. Nishio along with seven others crowd into the shelter and sit tight while the wind outside begins to howl. Minutes later, Nishio's father

howl. Minutes later, Nishio's father returns with dire news. Tokyo will be finished tonight. Go to the public

finished tonight. Go to the public shelter across the street.

The family evacuates the shelter and runs across the street while her father once again runs to his station. Yet

again, Nio's family arrives at the gate, and only her cousin and nurse are allowed into the already overflowing shelter. "You'll have to go somewhere

shelter. "You'll have to go somewhere else," the warden tells them. Nishio and

the rest of her family begin running towards another shelter 10 blocks to the south as low-flying bombers deliver their fiery cargo.

By 1:00 a.m. Tokyo time, inbound B29 pilots can see the red glow of the burning city from more than 100 m away.

An hour later, they will be able to see it from 200 m out. The superfortresses

come in one after another and drop their incenduries in areas which have not been hit yet, causing more fires, which spring up to merge with the rapidly advancing firestorm.

Japanese air defense tries their best, bringing down a total of 14 aircraft on this night. but is not nearly enough to

this night. but is not nearly enough to hold the attack. Second Lieutenant David Braden recalled, "It felt like you were staring into the mouth of hell. You

cannot imagine a fire that big."

Many crewmen later said that the fires on this night were so bright they could read the dials on their wristwatches.

By now, American pilots arriving over the city are greeted by an unusual greasy smell. Boston Globe reporter

greasy smell. Boston Globe reporter Martin Sheridan has joined the raid in a B-29 nicknamed patches and wrote afterward, "I not only saw Tokyo burning

furiously in many sections, but I smelled it. The dark smoke plumes had

smelled it. The dark smoke plumes had smelled only of burnt paper and wood when the raid began, but now the sickening stench of incinerated human beings forces many crewmen to dawn their

oxygen masks." Captain Charles Phillips

oxygen masks." Captain Charles Phillips wrote after the war, "It was the smell of death. No American airman will ever

of death. No American airman will ever forget that wretched smell which made them gag and stuck in their nostrils long after the mission. The thermal

updraft of the firestorm repels debris from the ground into the air which then become obstacles for the bombers. B29s

attempting to hide from the flank fire dive into the plumes which batter the crewmen around. One B29 is flipped

crewmen around. One B29 is flipped upside down by the powerful updraft causing the pilot to shout for help. How

the hell do you roll a B29? His flight

engineer responds, "Pull back the throttles on one and two." The pilot manages to get the bomber right side up.

Captain Phillips recalled his own experience. It was tumultuous. All my

experience. It was tumultuous. All my

skill was required as an instrument pilot to bring us back to wings level condition over and over again. Those of

us in the forward crew compartment could actually see pieces of window and door frames flying by the airplane. One

American crewman lands back at base with an intact Tokyo newspaper which blew into his B29.

The Firestorm spares nothing and no one, including ancient cultural landmarks.

The Sensor Gi Buddhist temple is Tokyo's oldest established temple, having been built in 645 AD.

A nearby survivor testified it burned completely in the blink of an eye. The

picturesque Kota Toy Bridge is one of the 16 great bridges of Tokyo spanning the Sumida River and links the open spaces of Sumida Park. It is also where

thousands of terrified civilians are trying to take shelter or cross the river to safety when a B29 drops a load of incenduries directly into the mass of humanity.

In an instant, it turned into a sea of fire, recalled a survivor.

The lowestrung steel bridge burns white hot as civilians leap into the Sumida River only to find the water surface on fire from Napal.

Over 1,000 people die on the Kota toy bridge which to this day still bears scorch marks from this night.

As one survivor stated, "Life and death were decided in a short time. Those who

stay behind to fight the fires in their neighborhood do not live long."

Historian Richard Frank wrote in his book Downfall: The End of the Imperial Japanese Empire. The key to survival was

Japanese Empire. The key to survival was to grasp quickly that the situation was hopeless and flee.

Tokyo bears witness to unimaginable scenes of suffering tonight. There is

more than one instance where a crowd of survivors fleeing from the fire through the narrow streets collides with a different crowd fleeing the opposite direction.

The resulting gridlock does not last long as most die a horrible death when the firestorm overtakes them. The center

of the blaze is later estimated to be over 1,500° C or 2,400° F. Hot enough to melt the water pipes supplying the brave but

doomed effort of Tokyo's firefighters.

A report by the city government later notes that those who sought shelter in the pitifully inadequate trenches were burned beyond recognition. Coyo Ishiawa

has reached the Uyugu police station which is besieged by fire. A messenger

wearing a smoldering uniform arrives and informs the police chief that the situation is hopeless. The chief turns to Ishiawa and tells him you should

evacuate as fast as you can. Ishiawa

steps back outside and realizes he has not left soon enough. Everywhere I

looked, there was only fire. The lack of oxygen and the roaring wind forces him to crawl as he dodges flaming mattresses and bags rolling down the street. People

all around him collapse and die from oxygen deprivation. And soon Ichawa

oxygen deprivation. And soon Ichawa accepts his apparent fate. I was

prepared for this to be the end of my life. At this moment, his colleague's

life. At this moment, his colleague's last words of don't die flash through his mind. summoning the last of his

his mind. summoning the last of his strength to get up and press on, he finally spots a stone wall and stumbles behind it, temporarily shielding him from the wind and fire. Shizuko Nishio

and her family have been fleeing through the firestorm for 10 blocks when they arrive at the Sumida Technical High School. They enter the school's basement

School. They enter the school's basement along with around 70 other refugees just ahead of the fire.

Carbon monoxide poisoning causes Shizuko and others sheltering in the basement to drift in and out of consciousness, but the iron door prevents the fire from reaching them. However, the closer the

reaching them. However, the closer the firestorm gets, the more fists pound against the door from the outside.

Rantic voices call out, "Open the door.

Let us in." Shizuko later said, "I naturally expected the adults inside the shelter would be sure to open the door."

But the door was never opened. When the

door is finally pried open after the raid, the survivors stare at a scene of horror. There was a massive wall of dead

horror. There was a massive wall of dead bodies, recalls Shizuko. Curtis Lame is nervously drinking a Coca-Cola in his headquarters in Saipan when the first

message from General Power arrives at 2:55 a.m. Washington time. First

2:55 a.m. Washington time. First

aircraft bombed primary target by radar.

Several large fires reported. The

messages then start coming in fast. Many

fires, large fires, and general conflration, reads another. Enemy air

opposition, none to slight, flack, moderate to heavy. And finally, observed reports of many fires, no enemy air opposition, flack, none. Visually

reported general conflration. A relieved

lame shares the news with press reporters, while the messages are flashed back to the Pentagon.

The last B29s drop their incenduries on Tokyo at 2:30 a.m. local time. General

Power finishes marking the outbreak of fires on a map with a grease pencil and orders the crew to head back to Guam. He

wrote after the war, "There is no room for emotions in war, but the destruction I witnessed that night over Tokyo was so overwhelming that it left a tremendous and lasting impression with me. In

roughly 2 and 1/2 hours, 279 B29s have dropped 1,665 tons of incenduries on the Japanese capital. Bomber crewmen who look back at

capital. Bomber crewmen who look back at the city will be able to see the red glow of the firestorm 150 mi away. At

3:30 a.m., a specifically outfitted B29 piloted by Flight Lieutenant Omar Cox lifts off from Guam to take photos of the devastation.

Operation Meeting House is the single deadliest air raid in the history of warfare. More people are killed on the

warfare. More people are killed on the night of the 9th to the 10th of March 1945 than at Hiroshima 5 months later or during the big raids on Dresdon or Hamburg.

Japanese officials sifting through the rubble estimate that 83,793 have died, but this number is almost certainly too low.

The consensus among scholars is a range between 90,000 and 125,000, but some historians have put the total as high as 200,000. The Tokyo Memorial Hall places

200,000. The Tokyo Memorial Hall places the number at 105,000, more than twice those killed in Hamburg in 1943 and four times those in Dresdon 4 months earlier.

The deaths of entire communities, large population transfers due to the war, and the destruction of records means we will never know the exact figure of those who died.

The Japanese government initially attempts to hide the extent of the disaster, claiming that only various places within the city were set a fire in a statement the day after the bombing.

However, the refugees from the city spread news of the attack, making it impossible to ignore.

The government changes its story, claiming that the USAF carried out slaughter bombing and Radio Tokyo hosts now emphasize the massive scale of the destruction. Yet, unlike the vigorous

destruction. Yet, unlike the vigorous Nazi propaganda following the attack on Dresden, which forced Allied leadership to briefly reconsider area bombing, the Japanese propaganda effort does not have

the same effect.

Instead, many civilians in the home islands lose whatever hope they have left that the war can still be won.

As part of a campaign to curry favor with the home front, the Japanese government lowers or abolishes taxes for those who lost homes or businesses.

From a purely military perspective, the raid is one of the most successful examples of area bombing in the whole of the Second World War.

22 targeted industries, including oil refineries, aircraft engine plants, and aviation fuel tank farms have been destroyed, which seriously disrupts the Japanese war economy.

The loss of so much commercial equipment in smaller factories sets production back by months and the destruction of food warehouses forces many civilians to flee the city.

This in turn reduces the available workforce which further destabilizes the war effort.

In total, 82% of incendiary zone 1 has been burned to the ground, which represents 18% of Tokyo's industrial area and 63% of its commercial district.

There is no doubt that the raid has accomplished its military objectives and hurt the Japanese war machine.

similar to that of RAF Bomber Command's area bombing strategy in Europe. The

moral question of the American area bombing raids on Japan is complicated and controversial to some.

The thousands of civilian victims injured or burned in the attack have few places to seek medical attention. 52% of

the first aid stations in Tokyo along with 48% of the hospitals and 49% of the maternity wards have been destroyed.

100 fire stations out of the 287 in the city have been reduced to ashes.

Morty services have been told by the city government to prepare for 30,000 additional casualties, but are completely overwhelmed by the over 90,000 corpses gathered after the

bombing. Those who survive are now

bombing. Those who survive are now facing starvation due to the loss of so many food warehouses and commercial preparation facilities.

The question of whether these bombings were justified and whether the military ends justified the means has been debated since.

US Secretary of War Henry Stimson was privately troubled by the lack of public outcry to the firebombing of Tokyo compared to a backlash against the attack on Dresdon.

He did not however protest against Lame's tactics.

AC Graing's book, Among the Dead Cities, notes, Germany sustained 5 years of bombing attacks. In three of these years, very

attacks. In three of these years, very heavy attacks. Japan experienced 9

heavy attacks. Japan experienced 9 months of bombing and in that time suffered nearly the same number of civilian casualties as did Germany.

Nonetheless, the fact remains that the United States Army Air Force deliberately targeted the civilian population of Tokyo, which paid a previously unimaginable price that night.

When looking at the moral question of area bombing civilians in Hamburg, Dresden or Tokyo to achieve a successful military outcome to shorten the war, the

answer is in the eyes of the beholder.

Major General Curtis Lame never shied away from his role in the bombing. He

said after the war, "Killing Japanese didn't bother me very much at the time.

I suppose if I had lost the war, I would have been tried as a war criminal. Every

soldier thinks something of the moral aspects of what he is doing, but all war is immoral. And if you let that bother

is immoral. And if you let that bother you, you're not a good soldier.

Lame will later lead the United States Air Force Strategic Air Command and eventually become the Air Force Chief of Staff at the beginning of the Vietnam War. His comments about bombing the

War. His comments about bombing the North Vietnamese back to the stone age along with his decision to run as a vice presidential candidate for George Wallace in 1968 will haunt him for the

rest of his life. Like his RAF counterpart Arthur Harris, Lame remains a controversial figure to this day.

The postwar debate over the deliberate bombing of civilians in Europe by Allied Strategic Air Forces has raged for years, but a similar debate has been far less prevalent about the targeting of

the Japanese home front.

Why has the morality over the bombing of Dresdon been so contentious while the firebombing of Tokyo has mostly gone by the wayside?

Robert Do explains in Mission to Tokyo that this is likely a result of what information was available at the time.

Average Americans knew little or nothing about any Nazi atrocities, whether they took place while waging the war or while slaughtering innocents at murder camps

like Awitz. But Americans knew plenty

like Awitz. But Americans knew plenty about Pearl Harbor and Nank King.

The atrocities committed against Allied prisoners of war and Filipino civilians by Japanese troops in the Philippines was especially wellknown by March of 1945.

Furthermore, it's impossible to ignore the racial element of the bombing. The

Japanese civilians were perceived differently from the German civilians, and Allies propaganda reflected this fact. Whereas the German people as a

fact. Whereas the German people as a whole were seen by many as fairly civilized prior to the discovery of the atrocities against Jews. American

newspapers caricatured the Japanese as bow-legged and bucktooththed. The US

government encouraged the depiction of the Japanese as a barbaric people in what historian John Daer describes as propaganda of the most sophisticated sort.

Operation Meeting House is only the first blow in Lame's strategic bombing campaign against Japan.

21st Bomber Command flies four more missions over the next 10 days against the cities of Nagagoya, Osaka, and Kobe to repeat the process. Altogether, these

five raids killed more than 110,000 people by conservative estimates and left more than 2 million homeless.

Lame recalled, "I was not happy, but neither was I particularly concerned about civilian casualties on incendiary raids. I didn't let it influence any of

raids. I didn't let it influence any of my decisions because we knew how the Japanese had treated the Americans, both civilian and military, that they'd captured in places like the Philippines.

The firebombing attacks temporarily end on the 24th of March because US 21st Bomber Command has exhausted its supply of incendiary bombs.

Woven into the tragedy of so many civilian lives lost were unbelievable stories of survival. As one example, 8-year-old Haruyo Waer took shelter with

her father in a public air raid shelter in the ward of Johto, which was overcome by the firestorm.

After losing consciousness from carbon monoxide poisoning, she was awoken by a rescue worker pulling her from a pile of 12 bodies. As a last resort, her father,

12 bodies. As a last resort, her father, along with the others in the shelter, embraced her and used their bodies to form a protective cocoon around Haruyo.

She was the only survivor.

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