Evening star., 1945-03-17
Kobe
Continued From First Page)

Gen. Laverne (Blondie) Saunders,
hero Of the early Solomons aerial
war and commander of the first
Super Fort force ever to attack
Japan. Gen. Saunders, injured in
an aircraft accident, is recuperating
in Walter Reed Hospital, Wash
ington.
Gen. Lemay, his chief of staff,
Brig. Gen. A. w. Kissner, and COM
manders of B-29 forces based on
Guam, Saipan and Tinian, ali are
close friends of Gen. Saunders.
Jap Fighter Pilots Wary.
japanese fighter pilots, who showed
no willingness to intercept the
B-29s as they devastated great Sec
tions of Tokyo, Nagoya and Osaka,
finally took to the air in strength
as the first of the raiders were
leaving Kobi.
Although first returning pilots
said As to so fighters harassed
them, none of the American planes
was known to have been lost.
Clouds helped hide the Yanks
speeding homeward.
Until the B-29s began their pres
ent highly destructive series of
raids on Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka and
Kobe, they had been bombing from
$4,000 to $4,000 feet altitude. But
on their record eight-day firing OF
industrial centers they have bombed
from only 5000 feet, so low that the
Japanese appear to have been
baffled by the change in tactics.
Highly inf1ammable buildings COW
cred about 80 per cent of the Kobe
target area. Only 10 per cent of the
buildings-chiefly war factories
were of modern construction.
Kobe. unlike Tokyo, Nagoya, and
Osaka, has no large rivers or canals
Three large reservoirs on which it
depends for water were believed
dangerously low for fighting large
fires.
Important Rail Center.
Japan's largest concentration of
shipbuilding and marine engine fac
tories are in Kobe Other prime tar
gets were its warehouse stores along
the waterfront, and steel, rail, ord
nance, chemical, machinery and rub
Der plants.
The city is an important railroad
center, on the main line between
Tokyo and Osaka. Destruction of
rail yards and lines would increase
greatly the empires communica-
tions problem, already made critical
by damage to facilities in the capital
and Osaka.
Tonnage of the Kobe raid-2,50O-
was the greatest of the Pacific war.
Tokyo was hit with 1900, Nagoya
and Osaka with 1000 each. The
greatest weight today was attributed
to eagerness of crews which each
time out decide they can take on
heavier loads" said a spokesman.
Total tonnage of the Tokyo, Ma
goya, Osaka and Kobe raids is $500
or more-l7,6O0,Oo0 pounds of fire
bombs.
Nine Bombers Land on Two.
A japanese imperial communique
claimed 20 Super Forts were shot
down over KobE and asserted fires
were extinguished by 1890 am.
Gen. Lemay said he had received
no reports of any Guam-based B-29s
being lost. Nine bombers made
emergency landings on the return
trip at Two Jima. midway between
the target and their Marianas Island
bases. Two is really making the
job easier" the general said.
After questioning pilots, Gen. Le-
may said the raid looks like a good
one"
Col. BlanchGrd added that a strong
wind was blowing the flames toward
the congested harbor area when he
started for home.
"The fire was spreading very rap
idly" he said, land the separate
conf1agrations were rapidly being
joined. 1t looks like we really raised
hell"
Many B-29s came back with flax
holes from antiaircraft fire, but Col
Blanchard said "it looked like the
Jap interceptors were not trying
very hard to catch us"