Cataclysm: General Hap Arnold and the Defeat of Japan

Chronology

11 Chronology September 29, 1938 Appointed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Maj. Gen. Henry H. (Hap) Arnold becomes Chief of the Army Air Corps. November 14, 1938 President Roosevelt calls for a massive air power buildup. November 10, 1939 Maj. Gen. Arnold, Chief of the Army Air Corps, initiates B-29 development program. December 7, 1941 Japanese aircraft attack the U.S. Pacific fleet and facilities at Pearl Harbor , Hawaii, bringing the United States into World War II. April 18, 1942 Lt. Col. James H. Doolittle leads raid of B-25 bombers against Tokyo, Japan, from the aircraft carrier Hornet. 12 Cataclysm June 3–6, 1942 In the battle of Midway Island, U.S. Navy aircraft put four Japanese aircraft carriers out of action. January 14–23, 1943 At Casablanca conference, President Roosevelt vows to pursue the “unconditional surrender” of Japan. January 23, 1943 The final report of the Casablanca conference by the U.S. and British Combined Chiefs of Staff states the importance of land-based air attacks against Japan from China. August 1943 Gen. Arnold introduces “Air Plan for the Defeat of Japan” at the Quadrant conference. November 11, 1943 Gen. Arnold’s Committee of Operations Analysts (COA) emphasizes Japan’s vulnerability to incendiary bombing. April 4, 1944 The Twentieth Air Force is activated, commanded by General Arnold, reporting as executive agent directly to the Joint Chiefs of Staff. June 1944 Start of B-29 Operation Matterhorn from Chengtu valley of western China. October 1944 Brig. Gen. Haywood S. Hansell, Jr. initiates XXI Bomber Command operations against Japan from the Marianas. January 20, 1945 Maj. Gen. Curtis E. LeMay replaces Hansell as commander of XXI Bomber Command. Chronology 13 March 9–10, 1945 B-29low-levelincendiaryattackonTokyo,themostdestructivebombing raid of the war. April 12, 1945 Death of President Franklin D. Roosevelt; Harry S. Truman becomes president. April 25, 1945 SecretaryofWarHenryL.StimsoninformsPresidentTrumanofManhattan Project on the atomic bomb. May 8, 1945 Germany surrenders. May 25, 1945 Joint Chiefs of Staff direct invasion of southern Kyushu (OLYMPIC), November 1, 1945. June 1945 On Guam, LeMay informs Arnold that Japan cannot hold on past October 1945. June 18, 1945 At key White House meeting with Joint Chiefs of Staff, President Truman approves planning for invasion of Kyushu (OLYMPIC), target date November 1, 1945. July 16, 1945 Successful atomic bomb test in New Mexico desert (Trinity). July 25, 1945 Gen. Thomas T. Handy issues order to employ atomic bombs “as soon as weather would permit visual bombing after about 3 August.” July 26, 1945 The Potsdam Declaration, signed by the United States, the United Kingdom, and China, calls on Japan “to proclaim now the unconditional surrender of all Japanese armed forces.” 14 Cataclysm August 6, 1945 Atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima. August 8, 1945 The Soviet Union declares war on Japan. August 9, 1945 Atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki; Emperor Hirohito informs cabinet and Supreme Council that Potsdam Declaration should be accepted provided the imperial institution be retained. August 10, 1945 Japanese communicate offer to surrender if the emperor is retained. August 12, 1945 Response by United States to Japanese offer is unclear. August 14, 1945 Japanese cabinet and Supreme Council accept Emperor Hirohito’s request to agree to U.S. surrender terms. August 15, 1945 Emperor Hirohito broadcasts message to Japanese people that the war has ended. September 2, 1945 The surrender documents ending the Pacific war are signed aboard the battleship USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay. ...