Generic filters
Exact matches only
Search in title
Search in content
Search in excerpt

This was a night incendiary mission involving 36 planes from the 6th Bomb Group:

The next incendiary mission was flown on 6 July. Takeoff was in the late afternoon and the target: Shimizu. Thirty-six planes were scheduled, thirty-six were airborne and thirty-six bombed the primary target, dropping 6616 bombs. Fifty-two percent of the Shimuzu’s total area was destroyed. No opposition encountered; no aircraft experienced trouble; all returned safely. Performance of the Sixth on this mission neared perfection.

 

[Pirate’s Log, p. 49]

 

20th AF Mission 253

 

Date: 6/7 July 1945
Target:Shimizu Urban Area
Participating Units: 313th BW
Number of A/C Airborne: 136
% A/C Bombing Primary:97.09% (133 A/C)
Type of Bombs and Fuzes: AN-M47A2 (100lb incendiary bomb with instantaneous nose)
AN-M17 (500lb incendiary cluster with nose set to open 3,000 feet above target)
Tons of Bombs Dropped:1,029.6 tons
Time Over Primary:070133K - 070310K
Altitude of Attack:7,100 - 8,300
Weather Over Target:4/10 - 10/10
Total A/C Lost:1
Resume of Mission:Crews that were able to observe through breaks in the clouds said the entire city was ablaze to the water- front. Severe thermals were encountered. Reconnaissance indicated 47% (.67 sq. mi.) of the Shimizu Urban area, 60% of the docks and 30% of the Honan Oil Plant were damaged or destroy- ed. Flak consisted of heavy, medium and AW fire, meager to moderate and generally inaccurate. Two B-29s were damaged by flak. Ground rockets were reported, some in groups of six. Twelve E/A sighted made 4 attacks. Twenty-five A/C bombed visually and 108 by radar. Three A/C were non-effective. Two B-29s landed at Iwo Jima. The A/C lost ran off the runway be- cause of brake failure. Average bomb load: 15,053 lbs. Average fuel reserve: 1,103 gallons.