Strategic bombing during World War II

**Strategic bombing in World War II** was when countries used large groups of airplanes to drop bombs on factories, cities, and transportation systems. The goal was to stop the enemy’s ability or will to fight by damaging its infrastructure and affecting its people.

## Background and early use

This kind of bombing started when Germany invaded Poland on 1 September 1939, and its air force attacked Polish towns. As the war grew, both Axis and Allied nations carried out such bombings. Britain responded to German attacks with its own raids on German military bases in March 1940. In September 1940, Germany bombed British cities in what became known as the Blitz.

## Allied strategy in Europe

From 1942, British bombing shifted toward industrial and civilian areas. At the same time, the United States joined with the Royal Air Force in what was called the Combined Bomber Offensive (CBO). British bombers usually flew at night, while American planes attacked during the day. In 1943 the CBO focused on destroying Germany’s fighter aircraft production, later targeting V-weapon sites and oil plants.

Daylight U.S. raids used B‑17 and B‑24 bombers with precision devices like the Norden bombsight to target factories and railways. British night attacks used large numbers of Lancasters and Halifaxes to hit entire cities. These huge bomber fleets, often over 1,000 strong, aimed to overwhelm German defences.

## Impact on Germany

Major Allied raids on oil refineries, transportation hubs, factories, and cities like Hamburg (Operation Gomorrah, July 1943) caused firestorms and mass damage. Hamburg lost about 60% of its housing and tens of thousands died. Attacks on refineries and transport systems severely hurt Germany’s ability to move supplies and fuel its army. By late 1944, Allied bombers, protected by fighters like the P‑51 Mustang, damaged German military and infrastructure so deeply that Germany's war effort collapsed in early 1945.

## Air campaign in the Pacific

In the Pacific, the U.S. initially used B‑29 Superfortress bombers from bases in China, but these were limited in range. After capturing islands like Saipan and Tinian in mid‑1944, B‑29s could reach deeper into Japan. From late 1944, incendiary bombing on Tokyo and other cities created massive firestorms. On March 9–10, 1945, over 330 B‑29s dropped napalm bombs on Tokyo, killing more than 100,000 people and destroying large areas. In August 1945, the U.S. dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki .

## Effectiveness and controversy

After the war, the United States conducted the Strategic Bombing Survey. It confirmed that Allied bombing significantly damaged Germany’s oil production and transport systems and helped end the war. However, German aircraft, steel, and tank production even increased during the bombing, making overall effectiveness debatable. Civilian casualties were high—hundreds of thousands to over a million—and millions lost their homes.

Historians and ethicists continue to debate whether the bombing was necessary or moral. Some argue that destroying oil supplies shortened the conflict and saved lives. Others see the bombing of entire cities as an unethical attack on civilians.

## Aircraft and defence

Europe’s bombers mainly used B‑17s, B‑24s, British Lancasters and Halifaxes, escorted by long-range P‑51 Mustangs from 1943 onward. In the Pacific, B‑29s flew high-altitude missions, dropping both incendiary and atomic bombs. German defences included fighters and anti-aircraft guns, while Japan’s air defences were too weak to stop the B‑29 raids.

## Infobox (military conflict)

- **conflict**: Strategic bombing during World War II
- **partof**: World War II
- **image**: The Sandman a B-24 Liberator, piloted by Robert Sternfels.jpg
- **image size**: 300px
- **caption**: A B-24 on a bomb run over the Astra Romana refinery in Ploiești, Romania, during Operation Tidal Wave
- **place**: European Theatre of World War II
Pacific Theatre of World War II
- **combatant1**: **Allies of World War II, Allied Powers**

(1939–1940)
 (1940–1944)
 (1944–1945)
 (1939)

- **combatant2**: **Axis powers**

- **commander1**: Charles Portal, 1st Viscount Portal of Hungerford, Charles Portal
 Richard Peirse
 Arthur Harris
 Arthur Tedder, 1st Baron Tedder, Arthur Tedder
 Henry Harley "Hap" Arnold, Henry Arnold
 Carl Spaatz
 Curtis LeMay
 Clifford McEwen
 George Jones (RAAF officer), George Jones
 Alexander Novikov
 Sergei Khudyakov
 Alexander Golovanov
- **commander2**: Hermann Göring
 Albert Kesselring

Hugo Sperrle
 Naruhiko Higashikuni
 Hajime Sugiyama
 Masakazu Kawabe
 Chūichi Nagumo
 Francesco Pricolo
 Rino Corso Fougier
 Ettore Muti
 Ternegg Kálmán, Kálmán Ternegg

Jarl Lundqvist
- **casualties1**: **Total: 749,940–1,305,029 dead**<hr>
**Britain:**
* 60,000 civilians killed
* 160,000 airmen (all Allies, Europe)
**China:**
* 260,000–351,000 Chinese civilians
* At least 682 aircrew from both the regular air force (Development of Chinese Nationalist air force (1937–1945), RoCAF) and crew members from List of aircraft used in China before 1937, warlord air forces KIA
**France:**
* 67,000 civilians killed from US-UK bombing
* Half of the 2,500 French crewmen of the British RAF bomber command perished
**Netherlands:**
* 1,250–1,350 killed (army and civilians) between 10–15 May 1940
* 10,000 Dutch civilians killed by air bombings from Allied Forces alone after 15 May 1940
**Poland:**
* 50,000 civilians in the 1939 campaign (including artillery bombardment and ground fighting). 2,500 – 7,000 civilians killed by bombing in Warsaw in 1939.
* 2,416 airmen of bombing squadrons (Polish Airforce in the West)
**Soviet Union:**
* 51,526 – 500,000 Soviet civilians
* 2,700 airmen (Japan)
**United States:**
* 79,265 airmen/personnel (Europe)
* Over 3,033 airmen (Japan)
**Yugoslavia:**
* Operation Retribution (1941), 1,500 – 17,000 civilians in Belgrade
- **casualties2**: **Total: 790,509–1,693,374+ dead**<hr>
**Germany:**
* 353,000–635,000 civilians killed, including foreign workers
* Very heavy damage to infrastructure
**Japan:**
* 330,000–500,000 civilians killed
* 20,000 soldiers killed
(in Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Hiroshima)
* Very heavy damage to industry
**Italy:**
* 60,000–100,000 civilians killed
* 5,000 soldiers killed
* Heavy damage to industry
**Hungary:**
* 19,135–30,000 killed and 25,000 wounded
* Heavy damage to industry
**Romania:**
* 7,693 civilians killed and 7,809 wounded
* Destruction and heavy damage to infrastructure and oil refineries
** Bombing of Sofia in World War II, Bulgaria:**
* 1,374 dead and 1,743 injured
12,564 buildings damaged, of which 2,670 completely destroyed
** Bombing of Bangkok in World War II, Thailand:**
* At least 2,000 dead.