On Oct 30, 9:58 am, Keith In Tampa <keithinta...@gmail.com> wrote:
> This is a "Forwarded" e-mail, with embedded pictures, so I am not sure how
> it will appear on the Group's message board. I did take the time to also
> attach the pictures, but the point being, is that I was totally unaware of
> the Japanese actually attacking the Continental United States until this:
>
> **
>
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> ****
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> I never learned about this in History Class...* *****
>
> ****
>
> ****
>
> *The Day Japan Bombed
> Oregon*<http://acmp.com/blog/the-day-japan-bombed-oregon.html>
>
> By: Norm Goyer
>
> September 9, 1942, the I-25 class Japanese submarine was cruising in an
> easterly direction raising its periscope occasionally as it neared the
> United States Coastline. Japan had attacked Pearl Harbor less than a year
> ago and the Captain of the attack submarine knew that Americans were
> watching their coast line for ships and aircraft that might attack our
> country. Dawn was approaching; the first rays of the sun were flickering
> off the periscopes lens. Their mission; attack the west coast with
> incendiary bombs in hopes of starting a devastating forest fire. If this
> test run were successful, Japan had hopes of using their huge submarine
> fleet to attack the eastern end of the Panama Canal to slow down shipping
> from the Atlantic to the Pacific. The Japanese Navy had a large number of
> I-400 submarines under construction. Each capable of carrying three
> aircraft. Pilot Chief Warrant Officer Nobuo Fujita and his crewman Petty
> Officer Shoji Okuda were making last minute checks of their charts making
> sure they matched those of the submarine's navigator.****
>
> [image: Description: cid:427605F34D0847C3B0820DDA25FD299E@ownerd9d35ba9d]***
> *
>
> *The only plane ever to drop a bomb on the United States during WWII was
> this submarine based Glen.*
>
> September 9, 1942: Nebraska forestry student Keith V. Johnson was on duty
> atop a forest fire lookout tower between Gold Beach and Brookings Oregon .
> Keith had memorized the silhouettes of Japanese long distance bombers and
> those of our own aircraft. He felt confident that he could spot and
> identify, friend or foe, almost immediately. It was cold on the coast this
> September morning , and quiet. The residents of the area were still in bed
> or preparing to head for work. Lumber was a large part of the industry in
> Brookings, just a few miles north of the California Oregon state lines.****
>
> [image: Description: cid:5D9DFEC3CF8A4293A5F919BF061546C6@ownerd9d35ba9d]***
> *
>
> *The aircraft carried two incendiary 168 pound bombs and a crew of two*.
>
> Aboard the submarine the Captain's voice boomed over the PA system, Prepare
> to surface, aircrew report to your stations, wait for the open hatch signal
> During training runs several subs were lost when hangar door were opened
> too soon and sea water rushed into the hangars and sank the boat with all
> hands lost. You could hear the change of sound as the bow of the I-25 broke
> from the depths, nosed over for its run on the surface. A loud bell
> signaled the All Clear. The crew assigned to the single engine Yokosuki
> E14Ys float equipped observation and light attack aircraft sprang into
> action. They rolled the plane out its hangar built next to the conning
> tower. The wings and tail were unfolded, and several 176 pound incendiary
> bombs were attached to the hard points under the wings. This was a small
> two passenger float plane with a nine cylinder 340 hp radial engine. It was
> full daylight when the Captain ordered the aircraft to be placed on the
> catapult. Warrant Officer Fujita started the engine, let it warm up,
> checked the magnetos and oil pressure. There was a slight breeze blowing
> and the seas were calm. A perfect day to attack the United States of
> America . When the gauges were in the green the pilot signaled and the
> catapult launched the aircraft. After a short climb to altitude the pilot
> turned on a heading for the Oregon coast.****
>
> [image: Description: cid:F943007D9E5E40849D644F687B3A0D79@ownerd9d35ba9d]***
> *
>
> *The Glen was launched via catapult from a I-25 class Japanese submarine.*
>
> Johnson was sweeping the horizon but could see nothing, he went back to his
> duties as a forestry agent which was searching for any signs of a forest
> fire. The morning moved on. Every few minutes he would scan low, medium and
> high but nothing caught his eye.
> The small Japanese float plane had climbed to several thousand feet of
> altitude for better visibility and to get above the coastal fog. The pilot
> had calculated land fall in a few minutes and right on schedule he could
> see the breakers flashing white as they hit the Oregon shores.
> Johnson was about to put his binoculars down when something flashed in the
> sun just above the fog bank. It was unusual because in the past all air
> traffic had been flying up and down the coast, not aiming into the coast.
> The pilot of the aircraft checked his course and alerted his observer to be
> on the lookout for a fire tower which was on the edge of the wooded area
> where they were supposed to drop their bombs. These airplanes carried very
> little fuel and all flights were in and out without any loitering. The
> plane reached the shore line and the pilot made a course correction 20
> degrees to the north. The huge trees were easy to spot and certainly easy
> to hit with the bombs. The fog was very wispy by this time.****
>
> [image: Description: cid:E68B05E162164BEABAAFAA60314EAE0F@ownerd9d35ba9d]***
> *
>
> *Warrant Officer Fujita is shown with his Yokosuka E14Y (Glen) float plane
> prior to his flight*.
>
> Johnson watched in awe as the small floatplane with a red meat ball on the
> wings flew overhead, the plane was not a bomber and there was no way that
> it could have flown across the Pacific, Johnson could not understand what
> was happening. He locked onto the plane and followed it as it headed inland.
> The pilot activated the release locks so that when he could pickled the
> bombs they would release. His instructions were simple, fly at 500 feet,
> drop the bombs into the trees and circle once to see if they had started
> any fires and then head back to the submarine.
> Johnson could see the two bombs under the wing of the plane and knew that
> they would be dropped. He grabbed his communications radio and called the
> Forest Fire Headquarters informing them of what he was watching unfold.
> The bombs tumbled from the small seaplane and impacted the forests, the
> pilot circled once and spotted fire around the impact point. He executed an
> 180 degree turn and headed back to the submarine. There was no air
> activity, the skies were clear. The small float plane lined up with the
> surfaced submarine and landed gently on the ocean, then taxied to the sub.
> A long boom swung out from the stern. His crewman caught the cable and
> hooked it into the pickup attached to the roll over cage between the
> cockpits. The plane was swung onto the deck, The plane's crew folded the
> wings and tail, pushed it into its hangar and secured the water tight
> doors. The I-25 submerged and headed back to Japan .
> This event, which caused no damage, marked the only time during World War
> II that an enemy plane had dropped bombs on the United States mainland.
> What the Japanese didn't count on was coastal fog, mist and heavy doses of
> rain made the forests so wet they simply would not catch fire.
>
> *This Memorial Plaque is located in Brookings , Oregon at the site of the
> 1942 bombing*****
>
> [image: Description: cid:A8391DE909A64FF09D4C95988AA1D1CD@ownerd9d35ba9d]
>
> Fifty years later the Japanese pilot, who survived the war, would return to
> Oregon to help dedicate a historical plaque at the exact spot where his two
> bombs had impacted. The elderly pilot then donated his ceremonial sword as
> a gesture of peace and closure of the bombing of Oregon in 1942.****
>
> ****
>
> ** **
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> image002.jpg
> 22KViewDownload
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> image003.jpg
> 19KViewDownload
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> image001.jpg
> 18KViewDownload
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> image004.jpg
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> image005.jpg
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> The only plane ever to drop a bomb on the United States during WWII was this submarine based Glen..jpg
> 18KViewDownload
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> The aircraft carried two incendiary 168 pound bombs and a crew of two.jpg
> 22KViewDownload
>
> The Glen was launched via catapult from a I-25 class Japanese submarine..jpg
> 19KViewDownload
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> Warrant Officer Fujita is shown with his Yokosuka E14Y (Glen) float plane prior to his flight..jpg
> 21KViewDownload
>
> image005.jpg
> 67KViewDownload
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