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August 8th, 1945 (WEDNESDAY)

UNITED KINGDOM: Aircraft carrier HMS Ocean commissioned.

GERMANY: Nuremburg: The trial of Nazi war criminals by a four-power military tribunal will open in Nuremburg, the traditional setting for the Nazi Party rallies and the city where the infamous decrees for the persecution of the Jews were promulgated. The top Nazis, now under arrest, are accused of planning to make war in violation of international treaties, violating accepted laws and customs of war, murder, extermination, enslavement and deportation. Acting under orders will not be accepted as a defence.

Britain is represented by Lord Jowitt, the lord chancellor in the new Labour government; the United States, the Soviet Union and France are represented by supreme court judges.

JAPAN: The U.S.S.R. declares war on Japan. It cites the failure of Japan to accept the terms of the Potsdam Declaration.

The USAAF's Twentieth Air Force dispatches 381 B-29 Superfortresses on 3 missions, 2 during the day of 8 August and 1 during the night of 8/9 August; 7 B-29s are lost.

- Mission 319: Shortly before 1200 hours, 221 B-29s drop incendiaries on Yawata destroying 1.22 sq mi (3.16 sq km), 21% of the city; 6 others hit alternate targets; 1 B-29s is shot down by Japanese fighters and 3 are lost to mechanical reasons.

- Mission 320: Late in the afternoon, 60 B-29s bomb an aircraft plant and arsenal complex at Tokyo; 2 others hit alternate targets; 2 B-29s are lost to flak and 1 to mechanical reasons (these are the last B-29s lost in action by the Twentieth Air Force).

- Mission 321: During the night of 8/9 August, 91 B-29s hit Fukiyama with incendiaries destroying 0.88 sq mi (2.28 sq km), 73.3% of the city; 1 hits an alternate target. 

In Japan:

- 100+ USAAF Twentieth Air Force fighters from Iwo Jima hit airfields, factory buildings, barracks, and rail installations in the Osaka, Japan area.

- USAAF Far East Air Force (FEAF) Okinawa-based B-24s, B-25s, A-26 Invaders, P-51s, and P-47s carry out numerous strikes against targets on Kyushu; targets include the Usa and Tsuiki Airfields, communications and transport targets all over Kyushu, shipping between Kyushu and Korea, and targets of opportunity in the Ryukyu Islands, on the China coast, and on Formosa. P-47s escorting Twentieth Air Force B-29s claim 10 Japanese planes downed.

The crew of the USN destroyer USS Cassin (DD-372) boards the Japanese hospital ship Kiku Maru northwest of Marcus Island but finds no violations and lets the ship proceed.

509BG perform another Pumpkin Raid.

Ops. Miss. Date Aircraft Cdr. Crew   Bombing Target Lat Long Result
38 15 08/08/45 44-27296 Price B-7 Primary Visual Conv. Textile Mill, Yokkaichi
38 14 08/08/45 44-27299 Devore A-3     Aborted
38 14 08/08/45 44-27300 Westover A-4 Secondary Visual Tsuruga Chemical Plant
38 15 08/08/45 44-27302 Eatherly C-11 Primary Visual Heavy Industry, Yokkaichi Harbour
38 14 08/08/45 44-27303 Wilson B-6 Secondary Visual Assembly Plant, Uwajima
38 14 08/08/45 44-27304 Lewis B-9 Opport. Visual Light Industry, Tokushima

CANADA: Destroyer HMCS Assiniboine paid off.

U.S.A.: President Truman signs the UN Charter.

The motion picture "Over 21" is released in the U.S. today. Based on the Ruth Gordon play, this comedy is directed by Charles Vidor and stars Irene Dunne, Alexander Knox and Charles Coburn. The zany plot has middle-aged Knox trying to complete Officers Candidate School in World War II with help from his wife (Dunne).

Submarine USS Cobbler commissioned.


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