XXI Bomber Command

XXI Bomber Command
29th Bombardment Group North Field Guam 1945
Active	1 March 1944 – 16 July 1945
Country	United States
Branch	United States Army Air Forces
Role	Command and Control
Engagements	World War II Asiatic-Pacific Campaign (1944–1945)

The XXI Bomber Command (XXI BC) was a unit of the Twentieth Air Force in the Mariana Islands for strategic bombing during World War II. The command was established at Smoky Hill AAF, Kansas on 1 March 1944. After a period of organization and its assigned groups receiving their B-29 Superfortress aircraft, the command transferred first to Peterson Field, Colorado, then deployed to the central Pacific, being headquartered at Harmon Field, Guam, in the Mariana Islands. Its assigned units engaged in very long range bombardment operations primarily against Japan until mid-July 1945.

The Marianas chain of islands, consisting primarily of Saipan, Tinian, and Guam, were considered as being ideal bases from which to launch B-29 Superfortress operations against Japan. The islands were about 1500 miles from Tokyo, a range which the B-29s could just about manage. Most important of all, they could be put on a direct supply line from the United States by ship. In August 1944, Major General Haywood S. Hansell, Jr was directed to take over command of the organization.