To the Editor:

In a letter appearing on August 22, Allan Keislar claims that the only explanation for the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki that “makes sense” was an attempt by the United States to kill Indian nationalist Subhas Chandra Bose after Truman was pressured by Churchill.

This theory is absurd and based only on a coincidence of history, a very shaky foundation. The selection of target cities is well documented in dozens of books, and the events surrounding the final targeting decision prove Mr. Keislar’s theory is incorrect.

During July 1945, four cities were selected by a committee as the targets of the first two bombs: Hiroshima, Kokura, Niigata and Nagasaki.

These cities were primarily chosen because they had not been bombed to destruction, unlike the majority of cities in Japan. The atomic bombing of a previously untouched city, in the military’s view, would provide the greatest incentive to the Japanese government to surrender. Mr. Bose probably went to Hiroshima and Nagasaki because they had not been burned to the ground, unlike other cities such as Tokyo.

The selection of these particular cities had largely been a military matter, with final approval coming from the Truman administraiton.

On the morning of August 6, Hiroshima was the primary target, although two other cities were selected as alternates. Hiroshima had been deemed the most desirable target because the military believed it was the only one of the four candidate cities that did not contain Aliied prisoners.

In any case, the target was subject to weather conditions over the city. The final decision to go for Hiroshima was made by Colonel Paul Tibbets, pilot of the Enola Gay, en route to Japan.

In the case of Nagasaki, that city was an alternate target for the second atomic bomb. The primary target had been Kokura.

When Major Charles Sweeney arrived over Kokura, he made three runs over the target, but each time it had been obscured in clouds. Sweeney did not leave Kokura for the alternate Nagasaki until his fuel had run low and Japanese interceptors had been launched. Major Sweeney had managed to find a hole in the clouds over Nagasaki and dropped the bomb through it.

If this hole had not been present, the bomb would have been jettisoned into the ocean. Obviously, if Bose had been the target of the second atom bomb, the military would not have jeopardized the mission by spending so much time above Kokura.

No matter what position an individual holds on the morality of dropping the atomic bomb, it is wrong to speculate on historical events without considering all of the facts.

In this case, Mr. Keislar bases his entire argument on the mistaken assumption that President Truman made the final decision on which cities were bombed. In reality, that decision was made by the commanders of each aircraft just hours before each event.

I urge Mr. Keislar and anyone else who has strong views on the atomic bombing, pro or con, to visit the library and browse the numerous works on the subject.

Michael Lammers

Senior

Aerospace Engineering