World War II Reports

This is a small collection of miscellaneous reports from and about World War II. Reports of the U.S. Strategic Bombing Survey can be accessed from a separate page.

To order reports simply click on the link. This will open a new page from which you may pay for the report and then download it immediately. All reports are high-quality electronic PDF files which you may print out or view on screen.

Antiaircraft Action Summary: Suicide Attacks, COMINCH P-009, was issued in April 1945 by the U.S. Fleet as a summary of the lessons learned from the first waves of Japanese Kamikaze attacks on U.S. Navy forces between October 1944 and January 1945. It contains complete statistics of known atacks, a complete list of successful attacks, and extensive information on Japanese tactics, U.S. defensive measures, and weapons. Illustrated with many photos. 78 pages.

Angel on the Yardarm: The Beginnings of Fleet Radar Defense and the Kamikaze Threat, by John Monsarrat (Newport, R.I.: Naval War College Press, 1985). A fine memoir of then-Lieutenant (j.g.) Monsarrat's service in the Navy and particularly aboard the U.S.S. Princeton (CVL 27), where he served as a fighter direction officer (FDO) in the ship's combat information center (CIC), the nerve center of the fight to defend the fleet against the kamikaze threat. Many photos. 197 pages.

U.S. Navy Bureau of Ordnance in World War II, by Buford Rowland and William B. Boyd, published by the Bureau of Ordnance, U.S. Navy in 1953, is an extended summary report of BuOrd activities in supplying the Navy with weapons during World War II and on to Korea as well. Illustrated with many photos and diagrams. 547 pages.

An Administrative History of the Bureau of Ships During World War II is a typescript draft with poorly reproduced photos prepared by the Bureau's Historical Section after the War. There is great deal of data about BuShips and the shipbuilding program. Volume I covers the period between the wars and the buildup in 1940-41. 191 pages.

    Volume II deals with the first half of the war. 404 pages.

    Volume III deals with the last half of the war and summarizes the massive wartime effort. 231 pages.

Evolution of Naval Radio-Electronics and Contributions of the Naval Research Laboratory, by LouIs A. Gebhard, NRL Report 8300 (Washington: Naval Research Laboratory, 1979). 467 pages, with many photos and diagrams. This is an NRL scan but it is not easy to find.

New Eye for the Navy: The Origin of Radar at the Naval Research Laboratory, by David Kite Allison, NRL Report 8466 (Washington: Naval Research Laboratory, 1981). 240 pages, with many photos and diagrams. This is an NRL scan, but it is not easy to find.

Weapon Data on World War II bombs. Weapon Data sheets were prepared and issued by the U.S. forces late in World War II to provide information on technical characteristics and weapons effects for those who were planning weapons use. Each sheet provided a mass of information in a very compact form that would be convenient for officers in the field. This collection of 26 sheets covers all U.S., British, German, and Japanese bombs and includes extensive data on their effects and utilization against a wide variety of targets. This includes the sheet on the Tallboy and Grand Slam bombs.

Weapon Data, Tallboy and Grand Slam 7A1. This sheet covers the 12,000 lb GP bomb, T-10 (Tallboy) and 22,000 lb GP bomb, T-14 (Grand Slam), the most awesome bombs of their time, with cutaway drawings, physical data, flight data, and penetration capabilities against a variety of targets. It is included in the collection of Weapon Data on World War II bombs but also can be obtained separately, if desired.

Updated July 2008