japanese balloon bombings on the U.S. during wWII
( scroll down for video )
The possibility of missiles launched from East Asia on the continental United States is arguably the most preeminent national security threat facing the nation at this time, but the story of the first actual intercontinental ballistic attack on the U.S. remains obscure, despite the fact it killed innocent Americans.
Beginning on November 3, 1944 until April 1945 approximately 9000 bombs were launched at the United States from northern Japan, not on ICBMs but attached to balloons crafted from washi or Japanese paper, and potato paste. It is estimated that over 1000 bombs made it across the Pacific and on to the American continent, with 354 landings confirmed.
This piece was for the evening documentary program Nonfix, and it introduces us to the now elderly women who, during the war, were enlisted as children to construct the paper used to craft the balloons. Labor shortages led to the decision to elicit the work of middle school girls who were sworn to secrecy, even from their families. Girls from 32 different schools around the country were compelled to stay after school every day to hand craft the paper "envelopes" for the technologically primitive yet innovative aircraft, under the supervision of teachers and detailed instructions from the military.
The most tragic result of the mostly 13 and 14 year old girls' endeavors was the death of a pregnant woman and 5 children, all essentially their own age, who out on a church picnic in May 1945, came upon an unexploded fugo off a national forest road near Bly Oregon, and not recognizing the innocuous looking device, accidentally set it off, killing them all.
An example of guidance provided to media in early 1945
The group was unable to identify what they encountered possibly due to a U.S, government issued gag order, which discouraged the US press from reporting the attacks lest the Japanese military receive confirmation that the fugo were reaching their targets. The gag order had the unintended consequence of leaving potential victims unaware of the deadly cargo.
I worked with the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum's historian and fugo expert, Tom Crouch, who shared with correspondent Yasuo Isojima and I the once top-secret US military reports on recovered fugo balloons, and gave us a very rare look at a perfectly preserved fugo at the institution's Garber Center warehouse in Suitland, Maryland. This section begins at 39:00 below.
The Air and Space Museum's main Udvar-Hazy Center exhibits a fugo "basket", where one can get a close up look at the mechanics of the mysterious weapon's navigation and ballistic technology. I can remember marveling at the intricate details of the device, only to take a step back to look over my shoulder where the enormous and intimidating Enola Gay, the B-29 Superfortress that dropped the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima is on display, instantly bringing into focus the vast disparity in military might and capability between the U.S. and Japan in 1945 as the war entered its final bloody stages.
The above video is the Fuji TV Nonfix documentary. The video on the right is a training film produced by the U.S. Office of the Chief of Naval Operations in 1945 for active military members that explains the design and functions of the "ingenious menace", and discusses defensive measures being taken against the weapon.