Air War in the Pacific Flashcards
Famous for the shark mouths painted on their Curtis P-40 Warhawks, who amassed an impressive 286 confirmed victories, losing on 12 pilots before being disbanded in July 1942?
The Flying Tigers
What raid inflicted little damage, but gestures shocked Japanese military leaders and cheered American public?
The Doolittle Raid
What battle, fought 4-8 May 1942, marked the first naval battle fought entirely by air?
The Battle of Coral Sea
In which battle, fought 4 June 1942, did US Navy pilots sink four Japanese carriers and turn the tide of the war in the Pacific?
The Battle of Midway
What was one of the most hazardous military air operations of World War II — an operation to transport vital supplies across the Himalayas?
Flying the “Hump”
In which operation did the 1st Air Commando Group provide assistance to British “Chindit” forces in conducting long-range penetration missions against the Japanese, using unconventional air warfare to support British Ground forces?
Operation Thursday
What operation conducted the designation for B-29 operations out of bases in India and China to carry out strategic bombing of Japanese force?
Operation Matterhorn
Who drastically altered B-29 tactics by ordering low-altitude night attacks with bombers stripped of defensive machine guns, reduced fuel loads, and increased bomb loads to avoid the jet stream and high-altitude engine problems?
Major General Curtis E. LeMay
What specially modified aircraft delivered the first operation atomic bomb?
B-29s
On 6 August 1945, what was the name of the aircraft that Col Paul Tibbets piloted that dropped a uranium bomb over Hiroshima, destroying nearly 5 square miles of the city and killing 80,000 people?
Enola Gay
What was the name of the uranium bomb dropped over Hiroshima?
Little Boy
On 9 August 1945, what was the name of the aircraft that Major Charles W. Sweeney commanded that released a plutonium bomb on Nagasaki?
Bockscar
What was the name of the plutonium bomb dropped on Nagasaki?
Fat Man
When did the Japanese surrender?
14 August 1945
