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United States Strategic Bombing Survey
1944–1947 History • Reports • Data |
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Between 1943 and 1945 the United States conducted massive bombing campaigns first against Germany and then Japan in an effort to wreck the
industries which sustained their war efforts and defeat them without the need for costly invasions. The U.S. Strategic Bombing Survey (USSBS) was commissioned to assess these campaigns of "strategic bombing" and the lessons they might hold for American defense in the future.
In the end, more than 320 reports were published, totaling about 33,000 pages. Most deal with the industries and economies of wartime Germany and Japan and the effects of strategic bombing on them, but there are reports on many other subjects as well. The operational aspects of the bombing campaigns are covered in some detail. There are pioneering efforts to assess bombing's effect on civilian morale and support for the war. And in the Pacific the scope was widened to include reports on almost all aspects of the air war, together with some ground campaigns. Most people who have studied World War II bombing have heard of the USSBS and even seen a handful of its reports. But there are hundreds of other reports which only a few people have opened in the past half century. While some of these are now of interest only in the narrowest of historical senses, scores remain of value not simply as unique historical documents but for their relevance to issues which continue to arise in war and peace. These pages provide: |
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For more information, email me: wdo@williamdoneil.com
Updated July 2008