Evening star., 1944-04-26
Prelude to Decision

When Prime Minister Churchill
declared some months ago that the
Allied aerial offensive against Hitler
would constantly mount in weight
and tempo until it reached a scale
never before imagined, he was not
trying to frighten the enemy with
empty words. If the Nazis thought
SO at the time, they know better
now, and they know it to their
sorrow. For the avenging fury of
the British and American air forces
has within recent weeks reached a
point where it must dumfound and
awe not merely the German people
but even those of us who are aware
OF 1t only from what we read in the
newspapers.
A few statistics suffice to make the
point mpressively clear. Not much
more than a year ago, a single thou
sand-ton bombing operation was
still regarded as sensational. But
last Thursday the British air force
alone carried out a record 5000 ton
assault, a hammer blow exceeding
ten times the weight Of the heaviest
German raid on Britain. In all of
October, 194S, the combined British
American tonnage OF bombs dropped
on Naz-held objectives was in the
neighborhood Of 10000. But within
q 60-hour period last week 1t was
about $4,000 and for the week as a
whole it was at least $4,000. Stated
another way, within those 90 tours
our Allied bombers. not including
those operating from italian. bases.
poured roughly three -fourths &c
much fre on Hitler as In all 81 days
OF last October. Indeed, within that
brief space OF time, they were not far
from equaling the total 1900 tons
unloaded on England In the last
three months Of 1910 at the height
Of the Luftwaffes blitz. and theyt
casne close TO doubling It within tlae:
full week
Ihis 4 air action Of nlagnitnde
dwarfng anything Of its Kind seen
before In this var. Nor Is it Just q
sporadic expression Of Allied might
in the sky. A year or 50 ago, the
thousand-ton assaults were rela-
lively infrequent, numbering per-
hapS four or five a month. But now
they are common; now we see single
day or night operations involving
three. four and five thousand tons.
And the enemy seems to be growing
progressively weaker in his efforts
to counteract them; in fact, so many
tnterceptors have been shot down by
our fighters and bombers and so
many Nazi plane plants have been
smashed that the Luftwaffe is no
longer able to maintain its first-line
air strength. According to Secretary
Stimson, 20 per cent Of this has been
knocked out since January, and in a
joint statement just issued by the
British Air Ministry and the United
States Strategic Air Forces, its vir-
tual obliteration is described as be-
ing now in sight, with losses already
exceeding rate Of replacement and
with the German high command
powerless to stop the swiftly moving
downward trend.
Moreover, within the past week,
our Allied aerial offensive has as
sumed a significant new pattern.
The weight of our attacks, which
once hit hardest at Nazi military
production Of all sorts, now appears
to be concentrated against key rail
centers as well as against the Luft-
waite. The implication here is that
the first phase of invading the con-
tinent from the west has already
started, with the emphasis upon
smashing the enemy's communica-
tions and paralyzing his air arm to
undermine his ability to resist our
armies when they land. Our ever
heavier bombing assaults thus con-
stitute the prelude to the fateful
days of decision; they can be inter-
preted in no other way. The climax
of the war in Europe is clearly
approaching fast.