The Daily Alaska empire., 1945-07-10
Five Other Industrial Cities Also Under Terrific
 Attack FIRE BOMBS DROPPED BY LARGE AIR FLEET
Great Oil Refinery Is Tar. get ' Chemical Area
 Given Pounding
By Leonard Milliman Associated Press War Editor)

Nearly 1000 American planes swept virtually unchallenged over Japan today in the heaviest aid blow of the Pacific war.
 The attack centered on Tokyo More than 1000 aircraft from pow. erful Third Fleet task force lying southeast of the capital bombed and strafed nearly 30 airdromes around Tokyo in a day-iong attack-pro- bably just the beginning of . two or three days assault. ,a4 Approximately 800 superforts dumped $500 tons of fire bombs and high explosives on at least five in- dustrial cities. Tokyo said they hit seven while IT other B-29s mined coastal waters.
 Japanese broadcasts reported 100 Mustang fighters from Two Jirna raided Osaka and Kobe while l30 bombers and fighters from Okinawa raked Kyushu.
 Coordinated Attack
 The coordinated attack stemming from the most powerful carrier force ever to enter Japanese waters. and from bases in three island groups carved out of the Nipponese empire. concentrated on Knocking out what's left of the Mikados air force and the airdromes from which they could defend Tokyo.
 Vice Adm. John s. McCain's fast carrier force moved in so close to the Japanese shore that it's 1000 odd planes could well have flown close to 2,000 sorties during the day.
 They combed a 70 by 60 mile area around Tokyo, pinpointing aifpsrts and little factories missed by the B-29s with their 5oo-pound bombs. They followed up with rockets and machinegun bullets.
 Was Carrier Raid
 Reports for the first half day of the attack, which opened at dawn. carried no word of interception or enemy counterattacks on the fleet. For the first time, Adm. Chester w. Nimitz named some 26 of the ships and Admirals participating It was the first carrier raid on Tokyo in five months.
 The Tokyo-reported strikes at the Nagoya- Osaka area and Kyushu were similar to American announced blows yesterday which neutralized airdromes in these areas in prep aration for the carrier strike and knocked out 26 interceptors.
 Oil Refinery Bombed
 Superforts dropped high explosive bombs on the Yokkaichi oil refinery near Osaka in an attempt to knock out Japan's largest remaining plant producing aviation gasoline
 The other four targets were fire bombed. making 34 Nipponese cities that have been thus raided. They included Sendai. largest city in northeast Japan. 1S0 miles beyond Tokyo.
 The two million tons of bombs dropped by air forces landed on Wakayama, steel and chemical cen ter south of Osaka
 Invasion Shadow
 The raiders threw the dark shadow of invasion" on Nippon as Tokyo reported defending troops were "entrenched in Qualifications along the coast of Japan awaiting the enemy landing."H
 Liberator heavy bombers from Okinawa made their first strike in force against the enemy homeland July 5, raining 200 tons of bombs plus incendiaries--on Omura air. tield. midway between Sasebo and Nagasaki, on Kyushu, Associated Press Correspondent Robert Geiger reported. Thunderbolt fighters es- corting the Liberator bombers shot down 10 Japanese training planes.