Lemay said that he could have firebombed them with 5,000 bombers - three attacks per day which would have killed millions and ended the war without the use of the A-bombs or an invasion.
Yeah, and that would’ve lasted another year, killed far more civilians than the atomic bombs, our boys would’ve had to been away from home for another year. Our Air Force guys in the European theater would’ve had to move over to the pacific and start a whole new war.
And Leemay was somewhat of a lunatic. An air campaign without an invasion would’ve never ended the war. Also, why the big worry and another year of misery just to prevent two a-bombs? The fire bombing of Tokyo was far more devastating and lethal. And his plan was to do that again and again for another year?
Our men needed to get home. They always lost years of their life because of Japan.
There wasn’t much left to firebomb. By the middle of ‘45 more fliers were dying ferrying the planes to the Pacific than were lost over Japan. There was no resistance in the air.
That said, Okinawa proved what an invasion would look like.
Dropping the bomb was the “cleanest dirty shirt” in a drawer full of really dirty shirts.