On August 28, 1943, and October 14, 1943, the USAAF staged daylight attacks on the Schweinfurt ball bearing plants. Allied analysis of the Nazi war machine had shown these ball bearing plants were critical. An all-out effort might destroy the Achilles heel of Nazi industrial power. However, the ball bearing plants were deep within the Reich, and the raids were disasters.
“In the famous and much-discussed second attack on October 14, 1943, when the plants were again severely damaged, one of the decisive air battles of the war took place. The 228 bombers participating were strongly attacked by German fighters when beyond the range of their fighter escort. Losses to fighters and to flak cost the United States forces 62 planes with another 138 damaged in varying degree, some beyond repair. Repeated losses of this magnitude could not be sustained; deep penetrations without escort, of which this was among the earliest, were suspended; and attacks on Schweinfurt were not renewed for four months.” (US Strategic Bombing Survey)
This report is an understatement. German radar detected the attack’s approach, and the course taken by the bombers allowed the Germans to deduce the target. Additional fighters quickly arrived at key airfields along the route to intercept the B-17s both on their way to Schweinfurt and back. The raiders were butchered. Until long-range escorts could be developed, deep raids into Germany were cancelled. By December of 1943, the P-51 Mustang was reaching the end of its development and started becoming part of the Eighth Army Air Force.[318] In a few months, they would arrive in sufficient numbers to influence the air battles in early 1944.
The British were not deterred. Bomber Harris planned a prodigious series of night raids on Berlin to win the war outright through bombing the Nazi capital. Germany had been working on deterrent measures and put together both an improved radar system and a night interceptor network before the powerful British operation was underway. When the raids began on Berlin the British bomber force suffered high losses, and the losses increased as the size of the raids increased. During the three and one-half month battle of Berlin, the RAF lost over 1,000 bombers. Finally, even Harris had to admit the losses were too high, and the Berlin bomber offensive finally came to a halt.
As the escorts began to make their numbers felt, the long-range daylight raids could begin once more. A new general was at the head of the Eighth USAAF, General Doolittle, the same man who had led the daring raid on Tokyo, Japan, in 1942. General Doolittle saw at once that the use of US Air power was wrong. He changed the emphasis from attacking almost any German production facilities to attacking the German air force and its production facilities. General Doolittle sent the bombers up as bait to lure the German fighters into unequal contests with newer American and British fighters. The general also turned the Mustangs loose, in that he allowed some flights to fly apart from the bombers rather than close in to protect the larger aircraft. As a result, American and British pilots began to kill German aircraft at their airfields before they had even taken off. The resulting American air offensive against the German air force was a total success. Due largely to the genius of Doolittle, by June of 1944, the Luftwaffe was no longer a decisive factor in the war (recall this was the second objective of the Casablanca Conference).
After the defeat of the Luftwaffe, Allied bombers and fighters roamed the German skies at will, bombing and strafing everything. Doolittle had applied the precepts of the famous writer Clausewitz and his masterwork book On War. By defeating the enemy’s army in the field first, the Luftwaffe being Germany’s air army, so to speak, afterward he could do whatever he wanted. He wanted to bomb and machine gun Germany into submission, and his pilots did their best to accomplish the objective. In the end, Germany did not fall because of the Allied air offensive. The German air force was destroyed, and that gave the Allies tactical air control over the battlefield—which made an enormous difference in the outcome of numerous battles. At the Battle of the Bulge, for example, Allied air power played a significant role in turning the tide against the German offensive. And without total control of the air, D-Day’s amphibious assault may have been impossible.
When studying modern wars, think about how many battles were won when the winner on the ground controlled the air. It is quickly seen that the side ruling the sky has an enormous edge. If one cannot rule the skies, the airspace must at least be contested; otherwise the combatant controlling the air wins the ground battle.[319]
The problem with the bomber offensive was that the cost may not have justified the benefit gained. Of course, when people are saying the bomber will win the war there is a tendency to wonder if what was promised was delivered. In fact, it was not. The war in Europe was not won by air power. Troops still had to land and beat up the German Army to achieve victory. Air power severely damaged Germany’s ability to wage war, but the ground pounders won the war one step at a time just as they have done since Sargon conquered Ur in 2371 BC.
The United States Strategic Bombing Survey tried to assess the impact of the huge, and extremely expensive, bombing effort. In essence, the survey concluded that the air war failed to deliver on its war-winning promises. Yes, it had contributed, but so had the ships and all the rest of the combat arms support units. The USAAF and the Royal Air Force always considered themselves special, because they would do more to beat Germany than other Allied units. They were wrong. The fellow face down in the mud with bullets flying over his head was the ultimate key to victory. He always has been.
The result: the air war was important, but not of supreme importance. After the war, the major air forces of the world perked up because of the atomic bomb. Now they possessed a war-winning weapon, and air power was king. At least for a while. No doubt the bomb could destroy armies as well as civilization, but who would use it? In small wars, such as Korea (only a million or more killed there—very “small”), the Communist guessed the United States would not deploy the weapon, and they were correct. American scruples tied its hands and gave the communists an edge. The USSR stole the bomb quickly and cheaply through effective spying, and two (and later three, and then four, and so on) nations aimed nuclear warheads at one another. Meanwhile, wars continue to start, and many almost never end (Vietnam, etc.). What good was the bomb?
The air force never wanted to be “flying artillery,” but that was why they were originally attached to the army. Reconnaissance and close air support WERE the missions of importance in the First World War, and it turned out they may have been the most important in the Second World War. Germany’s entire air force was constructed around the tasks of reconnaissance and close air support.[320] Allied air forces wanted to be more. Because of theories put forth after the First World War by many air theorists, such as Italian General Giulio Douhet[321] and Sir Hugh Trenchard of England, aviators thought by bombing civilians the enemy nations would cave in. They thought the bomber would always get through. However, radar and other modern inventions soon showed the bomber would be detected and shot down unless it got some help. Moreover, bombing did not cause civilian populations to demand peace. And why anyone thought a totalitarian nation would listen to its people is another unanswered question.
Some have concluded that indiscriminate bombing, as well as using the atomic bomb, was a war crime. This is based on the idea that killing civilians is illegal and immoral; however, ever since Sherman’s “March to the Sea” civilians have been fair game in modern war. The civilians support the war, manufacture the machines of war, produce the food that keeps the army in the field, and provides the soldiers necessary to fight the war. Destroy the workers and the nation’s ability to fight dissolves. Thus, there are no civilians in modern war. The Islamic terrorists know this, but many in the civilian world are loathe to admit this reality of our modern world.
Even with one thousand plane raids on Germany and around-the-clock bombing, air power did not work its predicted magic. It did kill many people and spread the misery of war far and wide. Now everyone suffered. Children and their mothers died right along with the soldiers. What a charming
world we had invented.
The Eastern Front—After Stalingrad
The war in Europe was won for the Allies on the Eastern Front. The Soviets knew about the German offensive in the Ardennes through their excellent spy network in Nazi Germany (and everywhere else). Typical of the Soviets, they did not alert the Allies about the planned attack. Instead, they gathered their forces for another push at Hitler after his reserves were committed in the West. As the war in the East progressed, Soviet attacks were launched over a wide front with great effectiveness.[322] The ability to achieve deep armored penetration and encirclement destroyed German Army Group Center in Operation Bagration[323] and constituted the final extinction of any German hope of shielding the homeland from the rapacious swarms rushing from the east. Germany was unable to supply its troops with enough of anything, and the harsh Russian winters continued taking their toll. The basic Soviet attack consisted of enormous numbers of troops and tanks, supported by large numbers of aircraft and artillery, falling upon German positions in all-out attacks of the most violent nature. The USSR had complete control of the air. With new aircraft types produced in enormous numbers, the Luftwaffe was simply being swept aside. Stalin’s orders included shooting commanders who failed, so Soviet commanders drove their troops inexorably forward while ignoring losses. Hitler’s orders hindered the German commanders and prevented proper troop dispositions with the net result of defeat after defeat for the Nazis.
Spies were everywhere in the Nazi regime, and they were working for the Soviets. As a result, Stalin knew Hitler’s every plan. Before the battle of Kursk on July 4 through 20, 1943, the last German offensive in the east, the Soviets knew about the attack through their Lucy Spy Ring, and constructed numerous and deep defensive lines in front of the German assault positions. The USSR assembled 1,300,000 men; 3,600 tanks; 20,000 artillery pieces; 2,400 aircraft; laid over 1 million mines; and had 23 antitank guns per kilometer in the Kursk salient. The Soviets even knew the time of the German attack, and opened an artillery barrage on German positions just prior to the German assault. At Kursk, the Wehrmacht threw nearly fifty German divisions into the strike, but it was a tragedy for the German Army. The Soviets possessed so many men and tanks that losing twice as many as the Germans meant nothing.[324] After the attack was underway, the Soviets hit the German flanks and drove through them to endanger the starting positions of the Nazi attack, causing Hitler to break off the offensive. Germany’s losses were high, and they were losses the Reich could ill afford—in men or equipment.
After Kursk, the battles on the Eastern Front droned on like bitter winter storms. Well prepared and informed Soviet units attacked, supported by thousands of artillery pieces pouring tons of explosives down on German positions. Soviet troops in prodigious numbers moved forward with clouds of Soviet aircraft overhead bombing and strafing German lines as the Soviet infantry advanced. Waves of tanks moved with the Soviet troops, sloshing through mud and snow, firing cannons and spewing bullets. Overwhelmed, the Germans would fall back or were ordered to “stand fast” by the Fuehrer, in which case they were decimated or obliterated depending on the Fuehrer’s next order and its timeliness. Even when the German troops could fall back, Soviet artillery and aircraft pummeled the withdrawing units. After retreating, the Germans would dig in again and await the next murderous Red Army assault. And so it would go, from 1943 until war’s end.
Figure 73 Soviet Operations 1943-1944
As the Soviets rolled unremittingly forward, Hitler began ordering nonexistent units around. Hitler threw away the lives of his men as the troops of his most hated enemy, Stalin, entered Berlin and began the final slaying of the Nazi beast. Hitler married his long-time lover Eva Braun, and then, on April 30, 1945, they both killed themselves in his bunker deep below ground in the Nazi capital. Members of his entourage took the lifeless Fuehrer and his bride to the surface, placed them in a shell hole, poured gas over them, and set them ablaze while giving the Nazi salute. They only returned to the bunker after Soviet shells began falling all around them. Even in death, the Nazi leader commanded the unshakable loyalty of those few left around him.[325]
The End in Europe
America, England, and the USSR made plans long before the capture of Berlin, and those plans allowed the Soviets the “honor” of conquering the Nazi capital. The Western Allies would halt at the River Elbe and await the Soviets. In spite of the agreement, Churchill wanted to continue on and capture Berlin before the Soviets; nonetheless, Eisenhower vetoed any such move. Eisenhower was not sacrificing even one soldier to gain Berlin and then hand it back to the Soviets. Churchill wanted to deny people and resources to the Soviets, and he wanted to keep people safe from slavery under Stalin. However, Eisenhower knew the Western Allies would keep their word and leave the area up to the Elbe River to the Soviets even if American and English troops crossed the line.
The last Fuehrer of the Third Reich was Grand Admiral Karl Donitz. Hitler appointed him in his will (yep, the murderer left a detailed last will and testament). The surrender of Nazi Germany took place on May 7, 1945. The Nazi leaders were rounded up, put on trial, and many were executed by the victorious Allied powers for their misdeeds. A new world organization was formed to try to prevent such terrible wars in the future. The United Nations, as it was termed, was the League of Nations reconstituted. It would have a major impact on the world, but not the one envisioned immediately after World War II.
The End in Asia
Japan was determined to fight on to preserve their emperor and their honor. However, in every area of conflict, the Allies were winning big. In Burma, the English, under General Slim, defeated the Japanese and were pushing them back to Rangoon and beyond.[326] The Philippines were American again; Manila was recovered by the US Army, and the Japanese supply lines to the oil and resources of the South Pacific were cut. American submarines eradicated the Japanese merchant fleet, and American bombers burned the guts out of Japan’s cities. The Japanese people were starving and dying by the thousands, but no thought of surrender was considered. Any burden was acceptable to the Japanese people when requested by the emperor.
Iwo Jima was invaded in February 1945. Once again, airfields were the target. American B-29 raids were flying around the island, adding many dangerous miles to the flights, and giving the Japanese early warning the bombers were inbound. By taking the island, the Americans would shorten the B-29 flights and use fighter aircraft based there to escort the huge bombers to Japan. The airfields could also be used to land damaged aircraft. Sulfur Island, Japan’s name for Iwo, fell after thirty days of bloody fighting. Casualties on Iwo Jima stunned the US Navy and Marine Corps. Using the same tactics developed on Peleliu, the Japanese dug into the island and had to be blasted out one hole at a time. It was difficult work, and the United States Marines again paid a heavy price for a tiny Pacific rock.[327] About 1,000 damaged bombers used the island for emergency landings. In fact, damaged B-29 bombers started using the airfield for landings before the island was conquered. The number of aircrew saved probably exceeded the deaths the marines endured in taking the island.
President Nixon gave the island back to Japan in the 1970s. One surviving marine said that if Americans understood the sacrifices made to conquer the island, we would never give it back. Such is the way of the United States of America, always forward looking and forever forgiving the wrongs of the past. Perhaps it is best to forget at least some history. In the Middle East, memories are thousands of years long, and fathers long ago murdered must be avenged in our day. The carnage continues because of ancient never forgotten wrongs. Some things are best forgiven and forgotten.
Battle of Okinawa
April 1 to June 21, 1945
The invasion of Okinawa, a very large island just south of Japan, was the last major land battle of World War II. It was a joint army and marine operation, with the army in overall land control, which began on April 1 of 1945 and lasted some eighty-seven days. After the marines landed they proceeded nort
h, and the US Army split away and attacked south. Attacked may be the wrong word, because initially the troops encountered no Japanese resistance. Only after the US troops reached the rugged mountains did the fighting begin. In a relatively short period, the marines captured the northern part of the island; meanwhile, the US Army ran into a masterfully prepared defensive network in the south. The Japanese thoroughly dug in, constructing an elaborate maze of tunnels and defensive positions in the mountains. These interlaced positions were mutually supporting with machine guns, mortars, and heavy artillery zeroed in on likely paths of attack. The Japanese fire was murderous, and the army took unusually heavy casualties during its assaults. After seizing the north, the marines joined the army units attacking to the south. General Buckner, in charge of land operations on the island, kept ordering frontal assaults on Japanese lines that gained ground, but at a high cost in lives. The marines suggested an amphibious assault to flank the main Japanese line, but Buckner rejected the concept. Slowly, very slowly, the US Army and Marines made headway against the superbly placed Japanese defensive positions.
The Super Summary of World History Page 50