Invasion Information
Planning
Strategy
Defenses
Casualties
Books
1945
Burning Mountain
Codename Downfall
Death Is Lighter Than a Feather
Downfall
MacArthur's War
The Invasion of Japan
| Operation Olympic > Planning |
Planning for Invasion
In 1943, a high level conference (codenamed "QUADRANT") took place in Quebec to discuss Allied strategy for the war both in Europe and the Far East. Prior to the the conference, a joint Anglo-American planning team proposed that invasion of Japan take place in 1947-1948.
This plan was however ultimately rejected, and both the British Chiefs of Staff Committee and the United States Joint Chiefs of Staff agreed that Japan should be forced to surrender within a year of Germany's defeat. How to force a Japanese surrender of course remained an open question.
- The US Navy urged the use of a siege of the Japanese home islands, by combining
blockade and aerial bombing. This would be facilitated by operations to seize territory, and
thus establish forward airbases in
Korea and mainland
China. Opposing this strategy
however, the US Army argued a siege strategy would prolong the war with no definite end in
sight.
- The US Army favored an invasion of the Japane home islands. The disadvantage of course of this approach, was the high casualties that might be expected, the logistical difficulties, and the fact that Japan has relatively few beaches suitable as landing zones (which would therefore all be heavily defended).
| Next > >: Strategy |
| World War II |
| Operation Barbarossa 1941 German Invasion of Russia |
| Operation Citadel 1943 The Battle of Kursk |
| Operation Dragoon 1944 Invasion of southern France |
| Operation Varsity 1945 Crossing the Rhine |
| Invasions That Never Were |
| Operation Sealion 1940 German invasion of England |
| Operation Olympic 1945 US invasion of southern Japan |
| Operation Coronet 1946 US invasion of northern Japan |
| Special Forces |
| Operation Entebbe 1976 Entebbe Airport Rescue |
| Operation Nimrod 1980 Iranian Embassy Siege |
| British Cold War Operations |
| Operation Musketeer 1956 Suez Crisis |
| Operation Corporate 1982 Falklands War |
| Operation Black Buck 1982 Vulcan raids on Port Stanley |
| Operation Granby 1990-91 Persian Gulf |
| British Post Cold War |
| Operation Herrick 2002- Afghanistan |