The flyboys were in the air as long as 17 hours on the night bombing raids from the Mariana Islands to Tokyo. Round trip was approximately 3,000 miles. Along the way the crews — average age 22 —faced Japanese Zeros, anti-aircraft fire, mechanical issues, air sickness, high winds and turbulence.

“The Japanese fire from the ground was good up to about 7,000 feet,” said Maj Gen. Thomas Moore, as quoted in a special exhibit at the National Museum of World War II Aviation in Colorado Springs. “All their heavy anti-aircraft weren’t worth a damn below 10,000 feet, so you had a neutral zone of 3,000 feet.”

“We would just pour the bombers through there at night …"

Gen. Curtis LeMay ordered his bomber wings to change tactics when they started attacking Japan to utilize incendiary bombs and "area

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