Bombers over Tokyo: The Strategic Importance of Doolittle’s Raid

"onceivably, the Doolittle Raid foreshadowed rejection of Japan’s designs for the Pacific, but it neither disrupted nor deterred the Japanese.[17] For the Japanese, the raid merely presented a tactical problem to be dealt with swiftly and severely. However, the fog surrounding the raid lingered as the U.S. would not release information that might jeopardize its airmen. Their withholding of information even prompted Japan to request that the U.S. detail the raid.[18] Nevertheless, Japan felt compelled to act to save face and prevent future attacks on the homeland by ruthlessly eradicating any threat of future raids emanating from Chinese airfields. Army commanders knew Chinese airfields within bomber range represented a threat to the homeland. In late April, the Japanese Imperial General Headquarters issued orders to the Thirteenth Army, along with elements of the Eleventh Army and the North China Army. Acting on limited information, the focus of their efforts and fury naturally became the American airmen, their Chinese abettors, and any potential Chinese airfield within range."