1944: Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec 1945 1st ½: Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep 1945 2nd ½: Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep

The basic chronology and general information on these pages is a composite of entries excerpted from “Air War Pacific Chronology: America’s Air War Against Japan in East Asia and the Pacific 1941-1945” by Eric Hammel (Pacifica, CA: Pacifica Press, 1988 ISBN 0-933353-26-6) and, “USAAF Chronology: Combat Chronology of the US Army Air Forces” by Jack McKillop (Piscataway, NJ). Also on line at Rutgers University.

Note: Shaded boxes show updates and comments from members of our B-29 mailing list, many of whom were there.

1 August 1945 (pg 693) ( The final assault: VJ - 32 days)

JAPAN:
During the night of 1-2 August, 801 of 836 B-29's dispatched carry out 1 mining, 5 incendiary and on HE bombing raids on Japan. One B-29 is lost (see below):

(Mission 305) Thirty-seven 504th BG B-29's drop mines in Shimonoseki Strait, in Nakaumi Lagoon, at Hamada, Sakai, and Yonago Japan and Najin and Seishin Korea; five B-29's mine alternate targets.

(Mission 306) One hundred sixty-nine 58th BW B-29's attack the Hachioji urban area destroying 1.12 square miles or 80% of the city.

(Mission 307) One hundred seventy-three 73rd BW B-29's hit the Toyama urban area, a center of aluminum ballbearing and special steel production, destroying 1.87 square miles or 99.5% of the city; one B-29 hits an alternate target.

(Mission 308) One hundred twenty-five 313th BW B-29's attack the Nagaoka urban area destroying 1.33 square miles or 65.5% of the city; 5 B-29's hit alternate targets.

(Mission 309) One hundred sixty 314th BW B-29's hit the Mito urban area destroying 1.7 square miles or 65% of the city; one B-29 hits a target of opportunity.

(Mission 310) One hundred twenty 315th BW B-29's bomb the Mitsubishi Oil Company at Kawasaki but could only add slightly to the damage previously inflicted; two B-29’s hit targets of opportunity.

One B-29 is Lost: 44-86344 462nd BG, Triangle U #19, MACR 14811, Gay Crew, Mission #306 Hachioji City area. Crashed in Sakatoichiba, Showa Town, Kimitsu County, Chiba Prefecture. 12 crew members: 1 KIA: Sgt. Lemuel A. McWhorter, Jr. - KIA 1 killed by Japanese Navy soldiers when he resisted capture: 1st Lt. Charles R. Harlan 10 POW: Imprisoned in Ofuna POW Camp and survived: Capt. Wyatte J. Gay Sgt. Jeremich J. Baker T/Sgt. Albert R. Barna 2nd Lt. Frank M. Bennett, Jr. 2nd Lt. Nowlin D. Collier 2nd Lt. George A.J. Doll Sgt. Wortimer L. Greenwalt T/Sgt. Herbert F. Rutter 1st Lt. Donaldson S. Medcalf 2nd Lt. Maurice R. Lescroart

Lee Florence's Diary: Books and Bridge !! ETA Aug.10th-noon

T Square 54: Mission 38: Capt. Robert G. Busche, Toyama urban area, 398.75 tons incendiaries from 498th, 99% destroyed. 1 ac lost.

2 August 1945 (pg 694)

MARIANAS:
LGen Nathan F. Twining relieves LGen Curtis E. LeMay as Commanding General XX AF; LeMay is assigned to USASTAF as Chief of Staff.

3 August 1945 (pg 694) No actions reported.

4 August 1945 (pg 694) No actions reported.

5 August 1945 (pg 695)

JAPAN:
During the night of 5-6 August, 612 B-29's fly 1 mining, 1 HE bombing and 4 incendiary raids against Japan. Two B-29’s are lost.

(Mission 311) Twenty-seven 504th BG B-29's mine the waters of the Sakai, Yonago, Nakaumi Lagoon, Miyazu, Maizuru, Tsuruga, Obama Japan and Najin and Geijitsu Korea; one B-29 hits an alternate target.

(Mission 312) Sixty-three 58th BW B-29's attack the Saga urban area destroying .02 square miles or 1.5% of the city. One B-29 is lost.

(Mission 313) Ninety-two 313th BW B-29's hit the Maebashi urban area destroying 1 square mile or 42.5% of the city; 4 B-29's hit alternate targets.

(Mission 314) Two hundred fifty 73rd BW and 314th BW B-29's attack the Nishinomiya-Mikage urban areas destroying 2.8 square miles or 29.6% of the city; three B-29's hit alternate targets. One B-29 is lost.

(Mission 315) One hundred six 315th BW B-29's bomb the Ube Coal Liquefaction Company facility at Ube destroying 100% of the refining units and destroying or damaging 80% of other structures; 2 B-29's hit alternate targets.

(Mission 316) Sixty-four B-29's attack the Imabari urban area destroying .73 square miles or 76% of the city area.

Aircraft lost: 44-69848 498th BG Hoffman Crew All Survived. Ditched Fuel. (Can't find a 58th BW B-29 that was lost. Any help will be appreciated.)

RYUKYU ISLANDS:
HQ 333rd BG and 435th, 460th and 507th BS flying B-29’s arrive at Kadena, Okinawa from the US.

6 August 1945 (pg 695)

JAPAN:
The 509th CG B-29 takes off from North Field, Tinian at 0245 hours. At two-minute intervals, 2 observation B-29's follow. At 0815 hours local, an atomic bomb is released over Hiroshima from 31,600 ft; it explodes 50 seconds later. (More than 80% of the city's buildings are destroyed and over 71,000 people are killed. The B-29 lands on Tinian at 1458 hours followed within the hour by the 2 observation aircraft.)

In the skies over and around Japan on an ASR mission from the 505th was the "William Allen White" with Ford Tolbert and Larry Russert. "Our crew was selected for super dumbo duty on both missions ... We flew to Guam and were briefed on the mission but not told of its exact nature. We were told that if a rescue attempt was required, we should wait thirty minutes before making the rescue. "...As I remember it, we were assigned a position about fifty miles away from the drop point and saw both detonated. I remember someone saying, 'They really hit a big one today.' " Ford Tolbert

7 August 1945 (pg 696)

JAPAN:
One hundred fifty-four B-29's fly a daylight bombing mission and 30 B-29's fly a mining mission on the night of 7-8 August. One B-29 is lost.

(Mission 317) One hundred twenty-four B-29's escorted by VII FC fighters, bomb the naval arsenal at Toyokawa. One B-29 is lost.

(Mission 318) During the night of 7-8 Aug, 29 504th BG B-29's escorted by FEAF P-47's drop mines in Shimonoseki Strait, at Miyazu, Maizuru, Tsuruga, Obama and at Najin Korea; one B-29 mines an alternate target.

Aircraft lost: 44-69883 "Marianna Bell" 9th BG, Nighswonger's Crew. Controls were badly shot up but made it to Iwo Jima where the crew bailed out; all survived. Injured: FO Robert Skeels Sgt. Benjamin Barrett Sgt. Peter Vrabel Cpl. Eldon Brown No injuries: Capt. Roy F. Nighswonger 2nd Lt. William F. Buckley 2nd Lt. Irwin Tobkin 2nd Lt. John M. Sather T/Sgt. Clayton F. Patisaul Sgt. Walter Chernial Sgt. Albert F. Vespa

Lee Florence's Diary: (Later notes: On Aug. 7th, while playing bridge in the Officer’s mess, we heard on the radio that some type of a very large bomb had been dropped on Hiroshima.)

8 August 1945 (pg 698)

JAPAN:
Three hundred eight-one B-29's fly three missions, 2 during the day of 8 August and 1 during the night of 8-9 August. Seven B-29's are lost. (These are the last B-29 crews lost in combat during the war)

(Mission 319) Shortly before 1200 hours, 221 B-29's drop incendiaries on Yawata destroying 1.22 square miles or 21% of the city; six B-29's bomb alternate targets. One B-29 is shot down by Japanese fighters and 3 are lost to mechanical reasons.

(Mission 320) Late in the afternoon, sixty B-29's dispatched from the 314th BW bomb an aircraft plant and arsenal complex at Tokyo; two B-29's hit alternate targets. Two B-29's are lost to flak and one to mechanical reasons.

(Mission 321) During the night of 8-9 Aug, ninety-one 58th BW B-29's hit Fukuyama urban area with incendiaries destroying .88 square miles or 73.3% of the city; one B-29 hits an alternate target.

Some of the seven aircraft lost are: 42-24711 462nd BG, Crashed on take off ran off runway, William's Crew 42-24891 "Monsoon Goon 2" 444th BG, Ditched 42-24685 40th BG, Crash landing Tinian, Markham Crew 42-93890 505th BG, MACR 14810, Cahall Crew 44-87664 314th Bomb Wing, 29th BG, Mission #320, Nakajima Aircraft Factory, Musashino, Tokyo and Tokyo Army Arsenal. Shot down by AA fire and crashed in Yaho Village, Kitatama County, Tokyo. 10 KIA, including AC Shumate. 42-63512 "Nip Clipper" 9th BG, MACR 14822, Keller Crew, 1 KIA, 10 POW's. Crew: Lt. George Keller - KIA (Anita Laymon's Uncle) 1st Lt. Carleton M. Holden - POW/Liberated 1st Lt. Eugene Y. Correll - POW/Liberated Capt. Walter R. Ross - POW/Liberated 1st Lt. Stanley H. Levine - POW/Liberated M/Sgt. Shelby Fowler - POW/Liberated S/Sgt. Martin L. Zapf - POW/Liberated S/Sgt. Robert M. Conley - POW/Liberated Sgt. Travers Harman - POW/Liberated Sgt. Gerald J. Blake - POW/Liberated Sgt. Christus M. Nikitas - POW/Liberated Nip Clipper, from the Yawata Urban Area, A/C Keller's aircraft from the 5th Squadron was badly shot up over the target but were able to fly it to an area off the coast where the crew bailed out. They drifted for a week before being captured. Lt. Keller was killed in the bail out when he struck the aircraft. The rest of the crew survived after a harrowing experience as POW's. From the 9th BG Historian: "Lt. George Keller was going to be put in for the Silver Star for getting his B-29 off the coast and for ensuring that his crew were safely out of the B-29 where it was no longer safe for him to bail out. Because of the circumstances of the next month 56 years ago today, Lt. Keller's award was never put in." From Earl Johnson: "There's a story about that Keller crew bailout. They were eventually captured by the Japanese, put in a truck and taken to the outskirts of Hiroshima which lay in ruins. "They were taken out of the truck and lined up on their knees and the Japanese Colonel was about to have all of them beheaded. Just before he gave the order a little Japanese Lieutenant said, "Colonel, I wouldn't do that. You know the war is over and if you behead these men you will be found out and become a War Criminal." "Whereupon the Colonel order the B-29 crew back into the truck and they were taken to a POW camp not too far away. A few days later they were all free again. "I heard this story at a Reunion of the 9th Group told by the Navigator (I think). Suffice to say you could hear a pin drop." Earl Johnson From Lee Florence: "I first heard of it from the bombardier on that crew, who lived in KC and played golf in my senior's group. Walter R. Ross wrote a book about that crew's experiences ... " Courage Beyond The Blindfold," published by Chester Marshall. Lee Florence

T Square 54: Mission 39: Capt. Laurence R. Elliott (normally w/T Sq 47 which was receiving BDR work), Yawata urban/industrial area, 21% destroyed. FE John V. Handley recalled, "We had P-51 Mustang fighter escort out of Iwo, so opposition was relatively light, so much so that the fighter escort separated from us and went down to strafe targets of opportunity. Since this was a daylight raid, everyone arrived back at Saipan about the same time and low on gas, as usual, with the resulting scramble in the landing pattern." (Note: Last combat mission.)

SOVIET UNION:
The Soviet Union declares war on Japan.

9 August 1945 (pg 697)

JAPAN:
A second atomic bomb is dropped on Japan. A B-29 from the 509th CG leaves North Field, Tinian at 0230 hours; The B-29 is followed by 2 observation B-29's. The primary target, Kokura, is obscured by bad weather; the attack is made against the secondary target, Nagasaki. The bomb, dropped from 28,900 feet at 1058 hours (local), explodes one minute after release. Japanese report 24,000 killed. The attacking B-29's refuel on Okinawa, and return to Tinian by 2339 hours.

(Mission 322) During the night of 9-10 August, 95 315th BW B-29's bomb the Nippon Oil Refinery at Amagasaki; two B-29’s bomb alternate targets.

10 August 1945 (pg 698)

JAPAN:
Japanese radio announces the Government's desire for peace and USASTAF limits operations to precision missions.

(Mission 323) During the day, 70 314th BW B-29's, escorted by 2 groups of P-51's, bomb the arsenal complex at Tokyo; 3 B-29's hit alternate targets.

(Mission 324) During the night of 10-11 Aug, 31 504th BG B-29's mine Shimonoseki Strait, Nakaumi Lagoon, and waters around Sakai and Yonago Japan and Wonsan Korea.

From Al Wood: "My letter to home on the 13th reported that the offer was announced over the loudspeakers around 10 pm. Shortly thereafter, a total repeat of the 4th of July celebration broke loose with flares, tracer bullets and gunshots. The loudspeakers then repeatedly sounded the order "Cease Firing, Cease Firing" in a most military fashion. This drew a response of several more rounds of firing. After things quieted down, the action moved to the Officers Club which stayed open to 1 am. "By Tuesday when the letter was written, we were anxiously waiting for somebody to wrap things up, not particularly concerned about what happeneed to the Emperor, just get it over with." Al Wood

Lee Florence's Diary: Landed at Pearl Harbor. Reported to Hickam Field rest camp at 1500.

11 August 1945 (pg 699)

UNITED STATES:
The Government of the United States accepts the Japanese offer to surrender.

Lee Florence's Diary: Reported to Fort Kam at 1300 to await transportation to States.

12 August 1945 (pg 699) No actions reported.

13 August 1945 (pg 700)

RYUKYU ISLANDS:
The 461st, 462nd, 463rd BS's of the 346th BG, 8th AF, arrive on Okinawa from the US with B-29's.

From Earl Johnson: "... I briefed something over thirty (30) crews at 313th Wing Hq. in a big briefing room at my Replacement Crew school, on a mission to Japan from North Field, Tinian and return or maybe they were to land at Kadena--can't remember. "About the middle of the briefing some guy came over from Wing Hq to get me to go see Gen. Davies, which I did pronto. He said the mission had been cancelled as "peace was very close" so I went back and told the 8th AF crews. They let out a big howl and moan for I think many of them ended WW II without every flying a combat mission ... " Earl Johnson From Al Wood: "From my letter to home, I reported that Pres. Truman's announcement came to the troops on Guam about 9:00 am. We gathered at the 19th BG briefing hall and waited for the crews out on a mission to return, which they did successfully about an an hour later. The word was that the 19th had executed both the first and last bombing mission of the war, the second part of which may be disputable. While the conversation was animated, there was no wild celebration. That had occurred on the night of the first offer. However, all troops were restricted to base. The Wing Band was loaded on a truck and toured the four group areas to spread the joy. "Soon afterward, we had our first barracks inspection with hats on and sleeves down. And a considerable interest in the point system for going home developed." Al Wood

Lee Florence's Diary: (Later note: On the evening of Aug. 13, a rumor started that the Japanese had surrendered. A large party started and continued for the rest of the night.)

14 August 1945 (pg 700)

JAPAN:
Seven hundred fifty-two B-29's fly seven missions against Japan without loss. (These are the last B-29 missions against Japan in WWII. Before the last B-29's return, President Harry S. Truman announces the unconditional surrender of Japan.)

(Mission 325) One hundred fifty-seven B-29's bomb the naval arsenal at Hikari; 4 B-29's hit alternate targets.

(Mission 326) One hundred forty-five B-29's bomb the Osaka Army Arsenal and 2 hit alternate targets.

(Mission 327) One hundred eight B-29's bomb the railroad yards at Marifu; 2 B-29's hit alternate targets.

(Mission 328) In the longest nonstop upstaged B-29 mission from the Marianas (3,650 miles), 132 B-29's bomb the Nippon Oil Company at Tsuchizakiminato.

(Mission 329) Eighty-one B-29's drop incendiaries on the Kumagaya urban area destroying .27 square miles or 45% of the city.

(Mission 330) Eighty-six B-29's drop incendiaries on the Isezaki urban area destroying .17 square miles or 17% of the city.

(Mission 331) Thirty-nine B-29's mine the waters off Nanao, Shomonoseki, Miyazu and Hamada.

Lee Florence's Diary: (Later note: On Aug. 14th we were informed that the actual surrender happened on the 14th. Too tired for more parties.)

15 August 1945 (pg 700)

JAPAN:
All offensive actions against Japan end. General of the Army Douglas MacArthur is notified that he is Supreme Commander for the Allied powers.

MacArthur tries to communicate with the Japanese government in Tokyo using War Department facilities. When he receives no reply, he turns to the Army Airways Communications System (AACS). The AACS Manila station (call sign WXXU), tapped out MacArthur’s instructions to the Japanese using a frequency over which AACS had been broadcasting uncoded weather information.

Within 2 hours, the Tokyo reply was received. This was the first direct communication between the Allies and the Japanese government.

1944: Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec 1945 1st ½: Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep 1945 2nd ½: Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep