During the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, Japanese aircraft indiscriminately bombed the territory of the mainland, killing countless soldiers and civilians. At the strong request of the people, the Nationalist government decided to take revenge on Japan, and on May 19, 1938, the Chinese Air Force dispatched two bombers to expedition to the Japanese mainland, dropped millions of "paper bombs" and returned triumphantly, causing strong repercussions at home and abroad...
Why "paper bombing"
As early as 1936, before the "Lugou Bridge Incident", the General Staff Headquarters of the National Government drew up a 1937 "National Defense Combat Plan", which was completed in January 1937 and was divided into two types: A and B.
Plan A required the Air Force to dispatch all heavy bombers to attack Japanese cities from Sasebo to Yokosuka, as well as Japanese air bases, and to destroy important cities along the Tokyo-Osaka line.
Plan B calls for all heavy bomber fleets to attack Japanese naval and aircraft bases and resource sites, such as Tokyo, Osaka, Sasebo Military Port, Japan's Arsenal in Liaoning, and Taiwan's Air Force Base.
Sasebo is a large city in the northern region of Nagasaki Prefecture in Japan, with the second largest population in Nagasaki Prefecture, after Nagasaki City, known as Japan's shipbuilding and defense industry city, and is now one of the naval bases of the US military stationed in Japan.
Yokosuka chokes the mouth of Tokyo Bay, the gateway to Tokyo, a military port city, where the headquarters of the U.S. Seventh Fleet and the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force are now located, which shows the importance of the city.
Although the plan was good, the strength of the Chinese Air Force at that time was very weak, and it was impossible to seriously damage the Japanese military industry enterprises and naval and air bases. So someone proposed another plan, "paper bombing", that is, to throw leaflets to the Japanese mainland.
This seemingly unrealistic proposal was adopted.
In 1938, Feng Zikai's painting "A Million Flyers are the Seeds of a Million Bombshells"
At the beginning of 1938, Shanghai, Nanjing, Xuzhou and other major cities fell one after another, and Wuhan became the temporary capital of the Nationalist government, which naturally became the primary target of Japanese bombing. Every day, Japanese planes carried out several rounds of bombing of the urban area, even hospitals and schools, resulting in countless casualties among the military and the people.
The atrocities committed by the Japanese army were denounced by the whole people, calling on the government to carry out retaliatory actions, for tat, and blood for blood. Some people advocate that the air force should be dispatched to bomb the Japanese mainland, but some people oppose it, believing that the Chinese air force is too weak and the defense is still insufficient.
Qian Dajun, director of the First Department of the Attendant Office of the National Government, organized a discussion on this issue and adopted the suggestion that the Air Force should go on an expedition to Japan, not to drop bombs, but to distribute leaflets and pamphlets to arouse the anti-war sentiment of the Japanese people, and reported it to Chiang Kai-shek. Jiang agreed after hearing this.
Chiang Kai-shek attached great importance to this matter, and he wrote in his diary on May 8:
The propaganda of the air force's demonstration must be carried out as early as possible so that the People of The Air Force will be vigilant in knowing what they are doing. Gai wu ren ye lang is arrogant, thinking that the Mishima Divine State will never be invaded by people, and such a delusion, I will promote the awakening of it.
It was a good idea, but if he had known that when the news of the Japanese occupation of Nanjing reached Tokyo, the Japanese people rejoiced and shouted long live the emperor and celebrated, he probably wouldn't have thought of waking up those people.
However, the retaliatory action of "blood for blood" has become an expedition to "promote awakening", which is really a helpless move. A person who is strong enough to crush the opponent probably does not care how much humanity the other party has, whether there is an awakening, because if you disobey me, I will beat you. Obviously, China did not have this strength at that time.
The city after the Japanese air raids
Preparation before the "bombing"
The National Government has put a lot of effort into propaganda documents.
Those who participated in the writing and translation were: Fang Zhi, deputy director of the Central Propaganda Department, and his Japanese wife; Guo Moruo, director of the Third Department of the Political Department of the Central Military Commission; and The Japanese anti-war writer Lu Jiyi.
There are several kinds of leaflets, such as "Letter to the Japanese People", "Letter to Japanese Workers", "Letter to Japanese Soldiers", "Letter to All Japanese Laborers" and so on.
Here are some excerpts from the flyer:
The air force of our Greater Republic of China is now flying to your country to be poor. Our purpose is not to harm the lives and property of your people, but to explain to the Japanese people the evils that the warlords of your country are committing on the whole territory of China... (Letter to the People of Japan (1))
As early as the sixth year of Showa, your warlords preached to the people: "Manchuria is the lifeline of Japan, as long as Manchuria is in hand, the people will be rich and the country will be strong." "But it has been seven years since the occupation of Manchuria, and in these seven years, what have the Japanese people gained except that the giants of the military department have become high officials and have become upstarts?" There are only heavy taxes, high prices, poverty and hunger, disease and death. ...... (Letter to the People of Japan (II))
Gentlemen, wait and wait, liberation will not come on its own, and now is the time for the people to regain their freedom. You are the workers' brothers who control production, who hold the heart of the Japanese warlords! Awaken the great power of the kings! For example, to control the fate of the Orient, to overthrow the Japanese warlords, to liberate the suffering of the two peoples, to fight with an alliance strike! ...... (Letter to Japanese Workers)
The contents of the leaflets have been carefully studied and carefully deliberated, and different words have been said for different classes, and the words are earnest and moving, but it is not known whether it will have an effect.
I think that at that time, whether it was the person who proposed the "paper bombing", or Chiang Kai-shek, Guo Moruo, or even the pilot who carried out the bombing, the effect on the leaflet would draw a question mark in his mind. But the strength is so strong that people are not allowed to think more.
The content of the flyer is fixed, so what aircraft to choose for the mission?
After the outbreak of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, the Chinese Air Force suffered huge casualties after many desperate battles with the Japanese army, not only sacrificing many excellent pilots such as Liu Pugang, Gao Zhihang, Le Yiqin, Li Guidan, etc., but also the number of aircraft plummeted from more than 300 to 81, many of which were still in a state of waiting for repair and could not be used.
By April 1938, only 85 of the 363 aircraft ordered by the Nationalist government from Western countries had arrived in China (13 of which were still being assembled). Fortunately, the Soviet Union supported China's resistance to Japan, and by April 1938, a total of 232 aircraft and a large amount of aviation equipment had been sold to China, which enabled the Chinese Air Force to partially recover its vitality and be able to carry out the "bombing" plan.
B-10B bomber
At that time, the Chinese Air Force had only three types of bombers that met the requirements for long-distance flights: the TB-3 heavy bomber, the Savoyat S-72 bomber, and the B-10B (Martin 139WC) bomber.
Among them, the Savoyak bomber was backward in performance and the flight condition was not good; the TB-3 bomber was seriously damaged after being bombed by Japanese aircraft, and the number was small and lacked accessories, which could only be used for short-distance transportation. Therefore, only the Martin 139WC is the most ideal choice.
The aircraft is a four-seat medium bomber with two 775 horsepower engines, a maximum speed of 343 kilometers per hour, a maximum range of 1995 kilometers, and a practical ceiling of 7375 meters. It was fitted with three 7.62 mm Browning machine guns with a maximum ammunition capacity of 1025 kg.
After the aircraft type is determined, who will fly it? This is obviously a very dangerous mission, can you fly back after going deep into the tiger's den?
The two were still in the hands of foreign pilots, who learned that they were going to expedition to Japan and demanded a sky-high reward of $100,000 from the Nationalist government. Naturally, Chiang Kai-shek would not agree. Just when he was still hesitating about who to send, the pilot of his special plane actually took the initiative to ask for help, which surprised Old Jiang Greatly.
This person's name is Xu Huansheng, born in 1906 in Heping Village, Chongmingmiao Town, Shanghai, studying medicine, the fourth batch of cadets of the Whampoa Military Academy, the first phase of the Central Aviation School, and went to Germany and Italy Aviation School for further study. After returning to China in 1934, he successively served as an instructor at the Central Aviation School of Hangzhou Jian [jiǎn] Bridge, a co-pilot, a detachment leader and a squadron leader of Chiang Kai-shek's landline, and in 1938 he was appointed as the captain of the 14th Air Force.
Xu Huansheng
Xu Huansheng was willing to fly, which made Chiang Kai-shek very happy. Subsequently, the other crew members were also determined.
In March 1938, the Air Force made adjustments to its bombing plans, first identifying the Japanese Sasebo Port and Hachiman City as bombing targets, and later changing the targets to Kitakyushu, Fukuoka, and Nagasaki in order to shorten the voyage.
Since then, Xu Huansheng and seven other crew members have modified the aircraft so that it can fly farther and the course is more accurate. At the same time, he and the crew trained in Fenghuangshan, Chengdu, familiar with the performance and operation of the aircraft, and added seven ground and air stations in Hankou via Nanchang, Guangzhou and Ningbo.
During the training, Chiang Kai-shek and Soong Ching-ling summoned Xu Huansheng and others, hoping that they would have the determination to succeed and become a benevolent person, saying that no matter what the outcome, the government would never fail them. Soong Ching Ling also gave this expedition to Japan a special name: the humanitarian expedition.
More than two months later, the crew was fully trained, and two bombers numbered 1403 and 1404 were also on standby at Hankou Wangjiadun Airport. Thereinto:
Long plane number 1403: Xu Huansheng is piloting, Co-pilot Su Guanghua, navigator Liu Rongguang, correspondent Wu Jichong;
Wingman No. 1404: Tong Yanbo is piloting, co-pilot Jiang Shaoyu, navigator Lei Tianchun, correspondent Chen Guangdou.
Heroic expedition, "bombing" Japan
At 15:23 on May 19, two Martin 139WC bombers took off from Wuhan as scheduled. It flew to Ningbo Li [lì] She's airport, which filled the plane with fuel and the crew temporarily rested in the pilot's lounge.
At 23:00 in the evening, the chief of the electric affairs section sent an urgent telegram from Hankou: you can attack, I wish you all the best!
Chen Guangdou later recalled that before leaving, several team members were summoned by their superiors, saying that "they can consider it for another hour and make a final reply."
"We are all destined to carry in our hands, we have not considered the danger and life and death, we feel honorable to be able to participate, we will not be greedy for life and afraid of death, because we are afraid of our families' worries, and we have not told our families before leaving." Chen Guangdou said.
Xu Huansheng's daughter Xu Ronglan recalled: "My father and comrades-in-arms thought that the mission was too dangerous and there might be no return, so the will was written before the expedition. ”
At 23:48 on May 19, 1938, two planes took off from Ningbo to the south and then east, across the ocean, to Japan.
This is a day worth remembering Chinese, because this is the first time that Chinese bombers have appeared over the invaders' homeland, an unprecedented move! Full of the pride and tragedy of Chinese, they flew to the old lair of the Japanese Kou like a death, showing the enemy the determination and backbone of the weak.
On the way, Xu Huansheng sent the first telegram to the motherland:
Job Ethics Rate All Births... Show the honor of participating in this work, and vow to sacrifice the determination to do our best to complete this extraordinary mission!
Because it is nighttime and the clouds are very thick, the second machine can only judge the direction by means of moonlight and through the directional long wave emitted by Ningbo Radio.
When flying over Japanese territorial waters, the five Japanese ships cruising at sea heard the sound of aircraft motors and turned on searchlights to search back and forth into the air, but Xu Huansheng and they pulled the plane above the clouds and were not detected by the Japanese ships.
Chen Guangdou said, "Fortunately, the anti-aircraft guns did not hit us. They underestimated us and thought that the Chinese planes could not fly, so there was no preparation at all. ”
At 0:35 a.m. on May 20, the crew reported that the clouds were too high to see the moonlight and could only fly blindly.
At 2:40 a.m., the fleet saw the coastline and identified it as the Japanese island of Kyushu. When flying over Nagasaki, the flight altitude drops to 3500 meters.
At that time, there was no light control in Japan, so there were street lights on in the early morning, which guided the direction of the fleet.
Xu Huansheng ordered: Target, street lights, bomb drops!
The bomb silo opened, and paper bombs flew like snowflakes over Japan, flying one after another, landing on the streets of Nagasaki.
On the wingman, Chen Guangdou was responsible for throwing "paper bombs."
"There is a hole under the plane, there is no automatic bomb-dropping device, only two hands to throw down ah, one pierced leaflet is thrown by hand." Chen Guangdou said.
When it flew over Fukuoka, the bomber was spotted by ground radar, the Japanese side issued an alarm, and the lights were controlled, and countless searchlights were fired into the air.
The two planes flew in a large arc over Japan, flying to Nagasaki, Kurume, Saga, Sasebo, Fukuoka and other cities, and delivered millions of leaflets.
B-10B bomber
After more than an hour, the million paper bullets were distributed, and the war eagles began to fly westward. Only at this time did the Japanese air defense department wake up from a big dream and fully implement the light control, the flares hung high, and the searchlights were turned on.
At that time, the "Xinhua Daily" carried a wonderful conversation between Xu Huansheng and Tong Yanbo on the plane.
Xu: "You see them panicking like that, there are lights everywhere." ”
Tong: "We really want to carry bombs, those cities are about to be bombed, and electric lights are the target!" ”
Xu: "One light suddenly went out, oh, another light went out." ”
Tong: "They haven't figured out what to do until now!" ”
............
The Japanese could not find the target, and did not know how many Chinese planes came, and did not dare to respond to the battle in a hurry, neither firing anti-aircraft guns nor taking off to intercept.
Xu Huansheng later recalled that at that time, Japan's air defense vigilance capabilities were quite naïve, and when our bombers flew over Japan, they were not detected, and until they left Japan after completing their mission, some cities below had just implemented light control.
When the second plane flew over the East China Sea on the mainland, the sky was already bright. News came from the ground that a number of Japanese fighter planes in Hangzhou and Shanghai had taken to the air to intercept them. However, the second plane determined the position of the plane by radio, cleverly avoided the Japanese plane, and returned safely.
At 4:30 a.m. on the 20th, the fleet began to return to the same route, and the two planes were lost on the way. At 8:48, 1404 landed in Yushan, Jiangxi; at 9:24, 1403 landed at Nanchang Airport.
After refueling, the two planes met over Wuhan at 11:13 a.m., and then landed safely at Hankou Wangjiadun Airport, successfully completing the task of this "humanitarian expedition".
The good news of the hero's triumph soon spread throughout the three towns of Wuhan, and thousands of people poured into the airport to see the hero's demeanor and see what the planes that "bombed" Japan looked like. He Yingqin, minister of military affairs, Kong Xiangxi, chief executive of the ministry, and Qian Dajun, director of the Aviation Committee, personally greeted him at the airport.
Kong Xiangxi, He Yingqin and others welcomed the hero's return
On May 22, on behalf of the Communist Party and the Eighth Route Army, Zhou Enlai of the Eighth Office of Wuhan and others presented the hero with a pennant with the inscription "Combined use of Virtue and Wei, Wisdom and Courage Are Complete."
Zhou Enlai praised: The mainland's air force is indeed a new team of condors, and it is precisely because of their short history and no bad traditions that their national consciousness is particularly deep, and they have been able to achieve so many great achievements, which has increased our respect even more.
On behalf of the CPC, Zhou Enlai, Wang Ming, and others presented a pennant to Xu Huansheng
For a time, domestic and foreign media reported on this matter.
Xinhua Daily published an article saying:
...... In this sense, the power of leaflets is greater than that of bombs.
The British newspaper "News Memoir" published an editorial:
The Chinese Air Force flew to Japan to distribute leaflets to awaken the Japanese people to overthrow the warlords, which was of great significance and interesting.
The Washington Post said:
The Chinese Air Force retaliated against the Bombing of Japanese aircraft as a dissemination of leaflets, which compared with Japanese civilization, actually left Japan without land.
In 1944, Xu Huansheng was selected as one of the 12 world-famous pilots selected by life magazine in the United States, and was praised by the magazine as the "first person" who bombed the Japanese mainland before the American pilot Doolittle.
Xu Huansheng
epilogue
From a military point of view, although the "paper" bombing of the Chinese Air Force did not cause any casualties to the Japanese army, nor did it slow down the pace of the Japanese invaders, its political impact was unprecedented. Especially for the Chinese people in 1938, it was too much to need a victory to boost the confidence of the nation and an action to show the Determination of the Chinese Government to resist aggression. On this level, the "paper bombing" was a success.
Of the eight warriors who participated in the Humanitarian Expedition, four later died on the anti-Japanese battlefield: Su Guanghua, 27, Wu Jichong, 29, Lei Tianchun, 31, and Tong Yanbo, 32.
Heroes are immortal!
Martin 139WC bomber
Reference: Selected Historical Materials of the Wuhan War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, Wuhan Municipal Archives, 1958 edition
History of China's Air War against Japan, Hangzhou Publishing House, 2005