Photo Credit: A North American B-25 Mitchell bomber flies over the countryside of California in 1942. The B-25 was heavily armed and carried a solid payload of bombs, proving versatile in the attack role in the Mediterranean and Pacific as well.  

Hudson                                           

Mr. Degroot

English 7

March 15, 2023

Operation Meetinghouse

 Operation Meetinghouse was a mission to get revenge. The Americans bombed Tokyo for well over an hour. They bombed Tokyo’s best war-working assembly lines. They took off from the “USS Hornet.” A ship that could carry 16 B-25s and together 80 Navy, Fighter, Torpedo, and Scout planes. Operation Meetinghouse was one of the most successful bombing missions ever.

B-29s were the planes that were used to bomb Tokyo in 1945. The B-25s were meant to fly so high that the enemies couldn’t detect them. The B-25s were a bomber plane that were “Made in USA.”   The B-25s were designed to be “Night Raiders” so they bombed at night because they could fly so high. “The Ruptured Duck” was one of the planes that bombed Tokyo and is displayed at Yorktown, Virginia. The “Green Hornet” was another plane to bomb Tokyo.   The planes were a big deal to the Operation on Tokyo. 

Incendiary bombs were bombs that were designed to light things on fire. They lit the way to know what buildings to bomb. The Incendiary bombs were 500 pounds each and most planes carried 2, but some carried more or fewer bombs. According to Britannica, “‘Incendiary Bombs’ are filled with a mixture of aluminum powder, iron oxide, and an intensive type of thermite”. The other bombs they dropped were E46 cluster bombs that demolished the buildings and the surrounding area. The bombs were meant to explode on impact. The E46 bombs destroyed

 more than one half of the buildings in Tokyo. More than ten thousand people were left homeless from the bombs that destroyed their homes. 

Operation Meetinghouse was also known as an Air Raid. The U.S bombed Tokyo on March 10, 1945. The bombing resulted in 110,000 fatalities.  The American pilots that flew the planes were told not to bomb the Japanese Imperial Palace. Otherwise Japan would not be loyal to them and attack them again. Operation Meetinghouse was right after Pearl Harbor. Operation Meetinghouse was America's revenge from the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Although the Japanese bombed

Tokyo was greatly in distress after Operation Meetinghouse. Many people were left homeless and many were killed. The Americans thought that Operation Meetinghouse was a success. They left a dent in Tokyo society and that proved well for America. 

Works Cited

Firebombing of Tokyo

Editors, History.com. Firebombing of Tokyo, edited by History.com Editors, A&E Television Networks, 16 Nov. 2009, www.history.com/this-day-in-history/firebombing-of-tokyo.

Hellfire on Earth: Operation Tokyo

Paridon, Seth. Hellfire on Earth: Operation Meetinghouse, edited by Seth Paridon, WW2 Museum, 8 Mar. 2020, www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/hellfire-earth-operation-meetinghouse  .

Bombing of Tokyo

Grant, R.G.. "Bombing of Tokyo". Encyclopedia Britannica, 4 Jan. 2024, https://www.britannica.com/event/Bombing-of-Tokyo.  Accessed 20 February 2024. 

The Deadliest Air Raid in History

Reichhardt, Tony. The Deadliest Air Raid in History, edited by Tony Reichhardt, 9 Mar. 2015, www.smithsonianmag.com/air-space-magazine/deadliest-air-raid-history-180954512/ 

History’s deadliest air raid happened in Tokyo during World War II and you’ve probably never heard of it

   Lendon, Brad. History’s deadliest air raid happened in Tokyo during World War II and you’ve probably never heard of it, edited by Emiko Jozuko, CNN, Mar. 2020, www.cnn.com/2020/03/07/asia/japan-tokyo-fire-raids-operation-meetinghouse-intl-hnk/index.html 

  Carlson, Mark Photo Credit: A North American B-25 Mitchell bomber flies over the countryside of California in 1942. The B-25 was heavily armed and carried a solid payload of bombs, proving versatile in the attack role in the Mediterranean and Pacific as well. Carlson, Mark

October 2023 https://warfarehistorynetwork.com/article/b-25-mitchell-medium-bomber-big-gun-of-the-mediterranean/ March 21, 2023