B-29 42-6323 “Eileen” used as a fuel tanker over the Hump
Reasons for the B-29’s Initial Deployment in the China-Burma-India Theater
- Range Limitations: The B-29, while boasting impressive range for its time, still lacked the reach to strike the Japanese home islands from existing Allied bases in the Pacific. In 1943, there were no suitable Allied airfields within the B-29’s combat radius that could support operations against Japan. The Marianas Islands, which would later become the primary B-29 bases, were still under Japanese control. Therefore, the CBI theater, despite its logistical challenges, offered the only viable option for launching B-29 raids against Japan in the early stages of the bomber’s deployment.
- Strategic Imperative: The Allied leadership, particularly General Hap Arnold, chief of the US Army Air Forces, was eager to bring the B-29 into the fight against Japan as soon as possible. The Superfortress was seen as a potential war-winning weapon, capable of delivering devastating blows to Japanese industrial and military targets. Early USAAF war plans envisioned a massive B-29 force operating from Northern Ireland to bomb Germany, but by 1943, the focus had shifted to Japan. This decision to prioritize the Pacific theater with the B-29 directly influenced the strategy for capturing islands in the central Pacific to establish forward bases for the bomber.
- Political Considerations: President Franklin Roosevelt felt a sense of obligation to support Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek and the Chinese Nationalist forces in their fight against Japan. Deploying the B-29 to the CBI theater, even with its inherent difficulties, was seen as a way to demonstrate American commitment to China and bolster Chiang’s flagging morale.
- Operational Necessity: The capture of the Mariana Islands, while deemed essential for sustained B-29 operations against Japan, would require extensive and bloody campaigns to wrest control from the Japanese. The CBI theater, with its existing (though limited) infrastructure, offered a temporary solution to get the B-29 into action while the necessary preparations were underway in the Pacific.
- Logistical Challenges: The decision to deploy the B-29 to the CBI theater was not without its critics. The logistical difficulties of supplying forward bases in China over the treacherous “Hump” of the Himalayas were well known. The “Hump” route, with its extreme altitudes, unpredictable weather, and limited airfields, proved a formidable challenge for even the robust B-29. These logistical constraints would ultimately limit the effectiveness of the CBI-based B-29 force and hasten the shift to the Mariana Islands once they were secured.
The initial deployment of the B-29 to the CBI theater was a complex decision driven by a combination of strategic, political, and logistical factors. While ultimately proving a less than ideal solution, the CBI deployment provided valuable operational experience and allowed the B-29 to strike at Japan while more suitable bases were being prepared in the Pacific.