View source for 1945 in aviation

{{Short description|None}}
{{yearbox
|in?=in aviation
|cp=19th century
|c=20th century
|cf=21st century
|yp1=1942
|yp2=1943
|yp3=1944
|year=1945
|ya1=1946
|ya2=1947
|ya3=1948
|dp3=1910s
|dp2=1920
|dp1=1930s
|d=1940s
|dn1=1950s
|dn2=1960s
|dn3=1970s
}}
{{Portal|Aviation}}
This is a list of [[aviation]]-related events from 1945:

== Events ==
* The probe-and-drogue [[aerial refueling]] system, in which the tanker aircraft trails a hose with a stabilizing conical [[drogue]] at its end which mates to a fixed probe mounted on the receiving aircraft, is perfected. It is superior to and replaces the looped-hose system which had been in use since 1934, and it remains in use today.<ref>Crosby, Francis, ''The Complete Guide to Fighters & Bombers of the World: An Illustrated History of the World{{'}}s Greatest Military Aircraft, From the Pioneering Days of Air Fighting in World War I Through the Jet Fighters and Stealth Bombers of the Present Day,'' London: Hermes House, 2006, {{ISBN|978-1-84681-000-8}}, p. 46.</ref>
* With its [[runway]]s repaired [[Leningrad]]′s Shosseynaya Airport (the future [[Pulkovo Airport]]) reopens; it had been closed since 1941 because of the proximity of [[Nazi Germany|German]] forces during the [[Siege of Leningrad]]. Only cargo and mail flights will take place until [[1948 in aviation|February 1948]], when scheduled passenger service finally will resume.
* [[Iraqi Airways]] is founded. It will begin flight operations in [[1946 in aviation#January|January 1946]].

===January===
* January 1 – The ''[[Luftwaffe]]'' targets [[Allies of World War II|Allied]] airfields in [[Europe]] in "[[Operation Bodenplatte]]", occurring during the German withdrawal from the [[Battle of the Bulge]].
* January 2
** Japanese aircraft attack [[United States Army Air Forces]] [[Boeing B-29 Superfortress|B-29 Superfortress]] bases on [[Saipan]] for the last time.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 10.</ref>
** U.S. Army Air Forces [[Twentieth Air Force]] B-29s based at [[Calcutta]], [[India]], bomb [[Bangkok]], [[Siam]].<ref name="philippines164">Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIII: The Liberation of the Philippines: Luzon, Mindanao, the Visayas, 1944–1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1989, p. 164.</ref>
**[[Admiral (United Kingdom)|Admiral]] Sir [[Bertram Ramsay]] dies in the crash just after takeoff of a [[Lockheed Hudson]] at [[Toussus-le-Noble]], [[France]].
* January 3 – The [[United States Navy]] creates its first [[aircraft carrier]] [[task force|task group]] devoted to night flying, [[Task Group 38.5]], consisting of the carriers {{USS|Enterprise|CV-6|6}} and {{USS|Independence|CVL-22|6}} and six [[destroyer]]s.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIII: The Liberation of the Philippines: Luzon, Mindanao, the Visayas, 1944–1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1989, p. 87.</ref>
* January 3–4 – U.S. Navy [[Task Force 38]] begins its support of the U.S. [[invasion of Lingayen Gulf]] with carrier air strikes against Japanese forces and facilities on [[Formosa]], the [[Penghu|Pescadores]], the [[Sakishima Gunto]], and [[Okinawa Prefecture|Okinawa]], with the loss of 22 U.S. aircraft. Bad weather curtails the strikes and makes [[bomb damage assessment]] impossible, although the task force believes it has destroyed about 100 Japanese aircraft.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIII: The Liberation of the Philippines: Luzon, Mindanao, the Visayas, 1944–1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1989, pp.&nbsp;88–89.</ref>
* January 4
** A single Japanese bomber destroys 11 U.S. Navy [[Lockheed PV-1 Ventura|PV-1 Ventura]] patrol aircraft parked at [[Tacloban Airfield]] on [[Leyte]].<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIII: The Liberation of the Philippines: Luzon, Mindanao, the Visayas, 1944–1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1989, p. 99.</ref>
** The [[escort carrier]] {{USS|Ommaney Bay|CVE-79|6}} is fatally damaged by a Japanese ''[[kamikaze]]'' in the [[Sulu Sea]] and scuttled later in the day.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIII: The Liberation of the Philippines: Luzon, Mindanao, the Visayas, 1944–1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1989, pp. 99, 101.</ref>
** The Japanese make their last ''kamikaze'' attack on the U.S. [[Battle of Mindoro|invasion]] force off [[Mindoro]], causing a [[cargo ship]] carrying ammunition to explode, killing all 71 [[merchant mariner]]s on board.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIII: The Liberation of the Philippines: Luzon, Mindanao, the Visayas, 1944–1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1989, p. 48.</ref>
* January 5 – ''Kamikazes'' damage the U.S. escort carrier {{USS|Manila Bay|CVE-61|6}} and [[heavy cruiser]] {{USS|Louisville|CA-28|6}} and the [[Australia]]n heavy cruiser {{HMAS|Australia|D84|6}} in the [[South China Sea]] west of [[Manila Bay]].<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIII: The Liberation of the Philippines: Luzon, Mindanao, the Visayas, 1944–1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1989, p. 103.</ref>
* January 6
** Twentieth Air Force B-29s raid the [[Ōmura, Nagasaki|Ōmura]] aircraft factory on [[Kyushu]].<ref name="philippines164"/>
** Task Force 38 carrier aircraft attack Japanese forces and facilities on [[Luzon]], claiming 14 Japanese aircraft destroyed in the air and 18 on the ground in exchange for the loss of 17 U.S. aircraft, but bad weather prevents them from employing the "Big Blue Blanket" tactic of maintaining continuous coverage over Japanese airfields to prevent Japanese aircraft from attacking the U.S. [[Invasion of Lingayen Gulf|invasion]] force in [[Lingayen Gulf]]. In Lingayen Gulf, ''kamikazes'' damage the [[battleship]] {{USS|New Mexico|BB-40|6}}, killing 30 – including British [[Lieutenant General]] [[Herbert Lumsden]] – the battleship {{USS|California|BB-44|6}}, the heavy cruiser {{USS|Louisville|CA-28|6}} – mortally wounding [[Rear Admiral]] [[Theodore E. Chandler]] – the heavy cruiser HMAS ''Australia'', the [[light cruiser]] {{USS|Columbia|CL-56|6}}, three [[destroyer]]s, a [[Fast minesweeper|destroyer-minesweeper]], and a [[Fast transport|destroyer-transport]] and sink a destroyer-minesweeper.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIII: The Liberation of the Philippines: Luzon, Mindanao, the Visayas, 1944–1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1989, pp. 90, 104–110.</ref>
* January 7
** In clearer weather, Task Force 38 aircraft employ the "Big Blue Blanket" tactic over Luzon, flying 757 sorties, shooting down all four Japanese aircraft that they meet in the air and claiming another 75 destroyed on the ground. Task Force 38 loses 10 planes in combat and 18 due to non-combat causes. Eleven U.S. escort carriers in Lingayen Gulf contribute another 143 sorties, and U.S. Army Air Forces planes also participate. In Lingayen Gulf, ''kamikazes'' sink a destroyer and a destroyer-minesweeper.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIII: The Liberation of the Philippines: Luzon, Mindanao, the Visayas, 1944–1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1989, pp. 90, 111–113.</ref>
** The second-highest-scoring American [[Flying ace|ace]] of World War II, U.S. Army Air Forces [[Major (rank)|Major]] [[Thomas McGuire]], is killed when his [[P-38 Lightning]] stalls at low altitude and crashes during a [[dogfight]] with a Japanese [[Nakajima Ki-43]] ([[World War II Allied names for Japanese aircraft|Allied reporting name]] "Oscar") fighter near [[Manapla]] over [[Negros Island]] in the [[Philippines]]. He has 38 kills at the time of his death.
* January 8
** A ''kamikaze'' again damages the heavy cruiser HMAS ''Australia'' in Lingayen Gulf. Out in the [[South China Sea]], ''kamikazes'' damage the escort carriers {{USS|Kadashan Bay|CVE-76|6}} and {{USS|Kitkun Bay|CVE-71|6}} and an [[attack transport]].<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIII: The Liberation of the Philippines: Luzon, Mindanao, the Visayas, 1944–1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1989, pp.&nbsp;117–118.</ref>
** The [[Pan American World Airways]] [[Martin M-130]] [[flying boat]] ''China Clipper'', operating as Flight 161, strikes a blacked-out boat and [[China Clipper#Loss|crashes]] while landing at [[Port-of-Spain]], [[Trinidad and Tobago]], killing between 23 and 25 of the 30 people on board.
* January 9
** U.S. forces [[Invasion of Lingayen Gulf|invade]] [[Luzon]], landing at Lingayen Gulf. During the day, ''kamikazes'' attacking ships in the gulf damage the battleship {{USS|Mississippi|BB-41|6}} and the light cruiser {{USS|Columbia|CL-56|6}}.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIII: The Liberation of the Philippines: Luzon, Mindanao, the Visayas, 1944–1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1989, pp. 126, 133.</ref>
** Task Force 38 carrier aircraft strike Japanese targets at [[Formosa]] and [[Miyako-jima]] in foul weather, flying 717 sorties and dropping 212 tons (192,325&nbsp;kg) of bombs. They shoot down all four Japanese aircraft they encounter in the air and claim 42 more on the ground, in exchange for the loss of 10 U.S. aircraft. They also sink a number of [[merchant ship]]s and small naval craft. It is the last of seven days of Task Force 38 support to the Lingayen landings, during which it has flown 3,030 combat sorties, dropped 9,110 bombs – totaling about 700 tons (635,036&nbsp;kg) of bombs – and lost 46 planes in combat and 40 to non-combat causes.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIII: The Liberation of the Philippines: Luzon, Mindanao, the Visayas, 1944–1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1989, p. 91.</ref>
** B-29s based at [[Kunming]], [[China]], attack Japanese shipping along the coast of Formosa, while [[Mariana Islands]]-based B-29s drop 122 tons (110,678&nbsp;kg) of bombs on Japan.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIII: The Liberation of the Philippines: Luzon, Mindanao, the Visayas, 1944–1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1989, pp.&nbsp;65–71, 84.</ref>
* January 11 – U.S. Army Air Forces [[Twentieth Air Force]] B-29s based at Calcutta bomb [[Singapore]].<ref name="philippines164"/>
* January 12 – With 850 aircraft aboard its carriers, Task Force 38 strikes targets along a 420-nautical mile (778-km) stretch of the coast of [[French Indochina]], flying 1,465 sorties; sinking 12 [[Tanker (ship)|tankers]], 17 other [[merchant ship]]s, the disarmed French cruiser {{ship|French cruiser|La Motte-Picquet||2}}, and 15 Japanese naval vessels, including the light cruiser {{ship|Japanese cruiser|Kashii||2}}; and destroying 15 Japanese aircraft in the air, 77 on the ground, and 20 [[floatplane]]s on [[Camranh Bay]] in exchange for the loss of 23 U.S. aircraft.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIII: The Liberation of the Philippines: Luzon, Mindanao, the Visayas, 1944–1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1989, pp.&nbsp;168–169.</ref>
* January 12–13 – ''Kamikazes'' resume attacks in Lingayen Gulf, damaging a [[destroyer escort]], a destroyer-transport, an [[attack transport]], and several [[merchant ship]]s.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIII: The Liberation of the Philippines: Luzon, Mindanao, the Visayas, 1944–1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1989, pp.&nbsp;146–151.</ref>
* January 13 – A ''kamikaze'' damages the escort carrier {{USS|Salamaua|CVE-96|6}} in the South China Sea off the mouth of Lingayen Gulf. It is the last successful ''kamikaze'' attack in the waters of the [[Philippine Islands]].<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIII: The Liberation of the Philippines: Luzon, Mindanao, the Visayas, 1944–1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1989, p. 152.</ref>
* January 14 – U.S. Army Air Forces [[Twentieth Air Force]] B-29s bomb Formosa.<ref name="philippines164"/>
* January 15
**Task Force 38 carrier aircraft in bad weather strike Japanese forces in China, [[Formosa]], and the [[Pescadores]], sinking two destroyers, a [[Transport (ship)|transport]], and a [[Tanker (ship)|tanker]] and destroying 16 Japanese aircraft in the air and 18 on the ground in exchange for the loss of 12 U.S. aircraft.<ref name="philippines171">Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIII: The Liberation of the Philippines: Luzon, Mindanao, the Visayas, 1944–1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1989, p. 171.</ref>
**The German [[submarine]] {{GS|U-1172||2}} torpedoes the British escort aircraft carrier {{HMS|Thane|D48|6}} in the [[Irish Sea]] near the [[Clyde Lightvessel]]. ''Thane'' never again is seaworthy.<ref>Chesneau, Roger, ed., ''Conway{{'}}s All the World{{'}}s Fighting Ships 1922–1946'', New York: Mayflower Books, 1980, {{ISBN|0-8317-0303-2}}, p. 26.</ref>
* January 16
** Task Force 38 aircraft strike [[Hong Kong]], [[Hainan]], and [[Canton (Guangzhou)|Canton]] and sweep the coast of China from the [[Liuchow Peninsula]] to [[Swatow]]. Hampered by bad weather, they sink two merchant ships and damage four others and destroy 13 Japanese planes in exchange for the loss of 22 U.S. aircraft in combat and five to non-combat causes.<ref name="philippines171"/>
** U.S. Navy escort carrier support to the Lingayen Gulf landings ends. During 12 days of support, their aircraft have flown 6,152 sorties and claimed 92 Japanese aircraft destroyed in exchange for the loss of two aircraft, both [[Grumman F4F Wildcat|FM Wildcat]] fighters.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIII: The Liberation of the Philippines: Luzon, Mindanao, the Visayas, 1944–1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1989, pp.&nbsp;155–156.</ref>
** The new [[British Pacific Fleet]] departs [[Ceylon]] for [[Australia]].<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, pp.&nbsp;103–104.</ref>
* January 16–20 – The U.S. Army Air Forces [[Fourteenth Air Force]] destroys over 100 Japanese planes on the ground in and around [[Shanghai]], China.<ref name="philippines164"/>
* January 17 – Twentieth Air Force B-29s bomb Formosa.<ref name="philippines164"/>
* January 21
** Task Force 38 aircraft fly 1,164 sorties in strikes on Formosa, the Pescadores, and the [[Sakishima Gunto]], sinking five tankers and five other merchant ships and destroying two Japanese aircraft in the air and 104 on the ground. In Japanese air attacks on the task force, a bomber damages the aircraft carrier {{USS|Langley|CVL-27|6}} and ''kamikazes'' damage the carrier {{USS|Ticonderoga|CV-14|6}} and a destroyer; an accidental bomb explosion during a landing accident damages the carrier {{USS|Hancock|CV-19|6}}.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIII: The Liberation of the Philippines: Luzon, Mindanao, the Visayas, 1944–1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1989, pp.&nbsp;179–182.</ref>
**The British [[East Indies Fleet]] aircraft carriers {{HMS|Ameer|D01|6}} and {{HMS|Shah|D21|6}} support the landings of the [[26th Indian Infantry Division]] on [[Ramree Island]] off the coast of [[Burma]].<ref name="Sturtivant, Ray 1990, p. 126">Sturtivant, Ray, ''British Naval Aviation: The Fleet Air Arm, 1917–1990'', Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1990, {{ISBN|0-87021-026-2}}, p. 126.</ref>
* January 22
** Task Force 38 aircraft conduct an early morning night strike against Formosa, sinking a large tanker in exchange for the loss of three U.S. aircraft, then fly 682 sorties during daylight hours to strike and conduct [[photographic reconnaissance]] missions against [[Okinawa Prefecture|Okinawa]], the Sakishima Gunto, [[Ie Shima]], and [[Amami O Shima]], destroying 28 Japanese aircraft, all on the ground. Task Force 38 then retires to its base at [[Ulithi Atoll]]. During January 1945, its aircraft have destroyed 300,000 tons of Japanese shipping and claimed 615 Japanese planes destroyed in exchange for the loss of 201 U.S. carrier aircraft.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIII: The Liberation of the Philippines: Luzon, Mindanao, the Visayas, 1944–1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1989, p. 182.</ref>
** U.S. Army Air Forces aircraft begin a heavy bombing campaign against Japanese forces on [[Corregidor]]. By the time U.S. ground forces land on Corregidor on February 15–16, they will drop over 3,200 tons (2,903,021&nbsp;kg) of bombs on the island.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIII: The Liberation of the Philippines: Luzon, Mindanao, the Visayas, 1944–1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1989, p. 203.</ref>
* January 24
** Twentieth Air Force B-29s bomb [[Iwo Jima]].<ref name="MSE">Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 12.</ref>
** [[British Pacific Fleet]] aircraft carriers launch strikes against the Japanese-controlled oil refinery at [[Pladjoe]], [[Sumatra]]. The refinery never recovers its full capacity during World War II.<ref name="Hobbs, David 2013, p. 27">Hobbs, David, "The Royal Navy's Pacific Strike Force," ''Naval History'', February 2013, p. 27.</ref>
* January 26 – The British aircraft carriers HMS ''Ameer'' and HMS ''Shah'' support the landings of the [[Royal Marines]] on [[Cheduba Island]] off the coast of [[Burma]].<ref name="Sturtivant, Ray 1990, p. 126"/>
* January 27 – Twentieth Air Force B-29s based at Calcutta bomb [[Saigon]], [[French Indochina]].<ref name="philippines164"/>
* January 29
** Twentieth Air Force B-29s bomb Iwo Jima.<ref name="MSE"/>
** British Pacific Fleet aircraft carriers launch strikes against the Japanese-controlled oil refinery at [[Soengi Gerong]], Sumatra. The refinery never recovers its full capacity during World War II. Japanese aircraft counterattack the British carriers, but the British [[combat air patrol]] shoots them all down. In the strikes on January 24 and 29 combined, the British Pacific Fleet has lost 16 aircraft to enemy action and others in accidents, as well as 30 aircrewmen, some without trace.<ref name="Hobbs, David 2013, p. 27"/>
**The Germans scuttle the incomplete aircraft carrier {{ship|German aircraft carrier|Seydlitz||2}} – the proposed name "''Weser''" for her had never been officially assigned – at [[Königsberg]] to prevent her capture by the [[Soviet Union]].<ref name="hazegray.org Graf Zeppelin">[http://www.hazegray.org/navhist/carriers/germany.htm#graf hazegray.org ''Graf Zeppelin'']</ref>
* January 31
** Part of the left [[wing]] of the [[Australian National Airways]] [[Stinson Model A]] ''Tokana'' (registration VH-UYY) separates from the aircraft at an altitude of about {{convert|1,000|ft|m|abbr=off|sp=us}} as it flies near [[Redesdale, Victoria|Redesdale]], [[Victoria (Australia)|Victoria]], [[Australia]]. The airliner [[1945 Australian National Airways Stinson crash|crashes]], killing all 10 people on board.
** The U.S. Army Air Forces′ [[Seventh Air Force]] begins two weeks of day-and-night bombing of [[Iwo Jima]].<ref name="MSE"/>
** Twentieth Air Force B-29s based at Calcutta bomb Singapore.<ref name="philippines164"/>
** During January, B-29s raiding Japan have suffered a 5.7 percent loss rate.<ref>{{cite book |author=Okumiya, Masatake|author2=Jiro Horikoshi |author3=Martin Caidin |title=Zero! The Story of Japan{{'}}s Air War in the Pacific: 1941–1945 |location=New York |publisher=Ballantine Books Inc. |year=1956|id= SBN 345-02242-4-125 |page=277 |others={{USD|1.25}} |isbn=0-345-02242-4}}</ref>

===February===
* The [[U.S. Navy]]'s first recorded use of jet-assisted take-off ([[JATO]]) takes place, when it is used to lift a [[PBM Mariner|PBM-5 Mariner]] off of a stretch of the [[Colorado River]] near [[Yuma, Arizona|Yuma]], [[Arizona]], where the Mariner had been forced down.<ref>Smith, Bob, "On Patrol: Flying The Martin PBM Mariner in WW II", Wings, Granada Hills, California, April 1990, Volume 20, Number 4, page 55.</ref>
* Two [[Imperial Japanese Army Air Force]] [[Mitsubishi Ki-46|Mitsubishi Ki-46-IV]] ([[World War II Allied names for Japanese aircraft|Allied reporting name]] "Dinah") reconnaissance aircraft fly 2,301&nbsp;km (1,430 [[statute mile]]s) at an average speed of {{convert|700|km/h|mph|abbr=on}}, a notable combination of speed and endurance for the time.<ref>Francillon, René J., ''Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War'', Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1979, {{ISBN|978-0-87021-313-7}}, p. 175.</ref>
* Japan{{'}}s [[Urgent Dispersal of Plants Act]] orders the dispersal of Japanese industry to underground, semi-underground, and surface sites, with aircraft plants taking top priority. Although it does not become a general effort until April or May, Japanese officials predict completion of the mandated dispersal by December 1945.<ref>Francillon, René J., ''Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War'', Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1979, {{ISBN|978-0-87021-313-7}}, pp.&nbsp;14–15.</ref>
* Ceremony at [[Boeing]] [[Wichita, Kansas|Wichita]] plant to mark delivery of the 1000th [[Boeing B-29 Superfortress]] bomber to the United States Army Air Forces.
* February 1–4 – Employing air [[command and control]] procedures pioneered by [[United States Marine Corps]] [[Lieutenant Colonel (United States)|Lieutenant Colonel]] [[Keith B. McCutcheon]], Marine Air Groups [[Marine Air Group 24|24]] and [[Marine Air Group 32|32]] provide highly effective [[close air support]] on Luzon for [[United States Army]] forces driving on [[Manila]].<ref>"Twenty-Five Significant Dates in USMC Aviation History," ''The Washington Post'', May 2, 2012, p. H5.</ref>
* February 2 – The Horten H.IX V2, the second prototype and first powered prototype of the [[Horten Ho 229]], makes it first flight at [[Oranienburg]], [[Germany]].<ref name = "bbc 229">Dowling, Stephen. [http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20160201-the-wwii-flying-wing-decades-ahead-of-its-time "The Flying Wing Decades Ahead of its Time."] ''BBC News'', 2 February 2016.</ref> It is the world's first flight by a [[turbojet]]-powered [[flying wing]].<ref name=WilkinsonNov2016>Wilkinson, Stephan, "The Horten Brothers′ Jet Flying Wing," ''Aviation History'', November 2016, p. 22.</ref>
* February 3 – Bound for the [[Kola Inlet]] in the [[Soviet Union]], [[Convoy JW 64]] becomes the first [[Arctic convoys of World War II|Arctic convoy]] to depart from the [[River Clyde]]. Its escort, designated [[Operation Hotbed]], includes the British [[escort aircraft carrier]]s {{HMS|Campania|D48|6}} and {{HMS|Nairana|D05|6}}. ''Campania'' carries the first [[night fighter]] involved in a [[convoy]] escort operation, a [[Fairey Fulmar]] equipped with [[aircraft interception radar]].<ref name="Sturtivant, Ray 1990, p. 105">Sturtivant, Ray, ''British Naval Aviation: The Fleet Air Arm, 1917–1990'', Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1990, {{ISBN|0-87021-026-2}}, p. 105.</ref>
* February 3 – The heaviest American strategic bombing raid on Berlin of the war (over one thousand bombers and 575 [[P-51 Mustang]] escorts) is carried out by the 8th Air Force, with highly decorated USAAF Lt. Col. [[Robert Rosenthal (USAAF officer)|Robert Rosenthal]] in command of the 8th's First Air Division<ref>{{cite web |url=https://100thbg.com/index.php?option=com_bombgrp&view=personnel&id=4475&Itemid=334 |title=100th Bomb Group Foundation – Personnel – LT COL Robert ROSENTHAL |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |website=100thbg.com |publisher=100th Bomb Group Foundation |access-date=December 5, 2016 |quote=Dec 1, 1944 – Feb 3, 1945 – 418th BS, 100th BG (H) ETOUSAAF (8AF) Squadron Commander, 55 hours, B-17 Air Leader 5 c/m (combat missions) 45 c/hrs (combat hours) '''1 Division Lead (Berlin Feb 3, 1945''', shot down, picked up by Russians and returned to England) Acting Command 4 Wing Leads, Pilot Feb 3, 1945 – BERLIN – MACR #12046, – A/C#44 8379}}</ref> Among the nearly 3,000 German lives lost in the raid,<ref>Smit, Erik/Evthalia Staikos/Dirk Thormann, ''3. Februar 1945: Die Zerstörung Kreuzbergs aus der Luft'', Martin Düspohl (ed.) on behalf of the Kunstamt Kreuzberg/Kreuzberg-Museum für Stadtentwicklung und Sozialgeschichte in co-operation with the Verein zur Erforschung und Darstellung der Geschichte Kreuzbergs e.V., Berlin: Kunstamt Kreuzberg, 1995, pp. 12seq; {{ISBN|3-9804686-0-7}}.</ref> was the notorious Nazi ''[[Volksgerichtshof]]'' justice, [[Roland Freisler#Death|Roland Freisler]].
* February 4
** The [[British Pacific Fleet]] arrives at [[Fremantle]], [[Australia]].<ref name="operations104">Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 104.</ref>
** The Royal Air Force [[Gloster Meteor|Gloster Meteor F.3]] jet fighter deploys to Melsbroeck in Belgium to operate with the 2nd Tactical Air Force.
* February 6
** ''[[SS-Obergruppenführer]]'' [[Hans Kammler]] cancels the German [[Henschel Hs 117]] [[surface-to-air missile]] and [[air-to-air missile]] project.
** The [[United States Coast Guard]]'s efforts to develop the [[United States Department of the Navy]]{{'}}s capability to use the [[helicopter]] as an [[antisubmarine warfare]] platform come to an end.<ref>[http://www.uscg.mil/history/webaircraft/CGAviationHistory1939_1956.pdf A History of Coast Guard Aviation: The Growth Years (1939–1956)]</ref>
* February 7 – 12 German [[Junkers Ju 88]]s attack [[Convoy JW 64]] during its voyage from the Clyde to the Kola Inlet. An escorting [[corvette]] shoots one down.<ref name="Sturtivant, Ray 1990, p. 105"/>
* February 9 – A dozen [[Focke-Wulf Fw 190]]s of [[JG 5|''Jagdgeschwader'' 5]] attack over 30 [[British Commonwealth]] [[Beaufighter]]s escorted by about a dozen Royal Air Force [[P-51 Mustang|Mustang]]s over the [[Førde Fjord]] in Norway while the Allied aircraft are conducting a strike against German Navy vessels. The Allies lose eight Beaufighters and one Mustang in the failed raid, and the Germans lose several Fw 190s. Two of the Fw 190s shot down in the combat [[Jagdgeschwader 5#JG 5's Focke-Wulf Fw 190 survivors|still exist]], with at least one of them undergoing restoration to airworthy status.
* February 10
** Flying the [[4th Fighter Squadron]] [[P-51D Mustang]] ''Bad Angel'' over [[Batan Island]] in the [[Formosa Strait]], [[United States Army Air Forces]] (USAAF) [[Second Lieutenant]] Louis Curdes spots a USAAF [[39th Military Airlift Squadron]] [[C-47 Skytrain]] on approach to land at a Japanese airfield. After the C-47 fails to respond to his attempt to warn its pilots of their mistake, he shoots out its engines, forcing it to [[Water landing|ditch]] offshore, and its passengers and crew take to [[life raft]]s. He then drops them a message telling them to keep away from shore. He and his wingman return to base, then fly back to the rafts before dawn the next morning to cover the life rafts until a [[Consolidated PBY Catalina|PBY-5A Catalina]] [[Amphibious aircraft|amphibian]] [[flying boat]] picks them up. Upon returning to base, he discovers that he had been out on a date with a nurse board the plane the night before he shot it down. Although he sports an American flag on his P-51D to signify shooting down the C-47, he is not awarded an official kill, but he does receive an [[Oak Leaf Cluster]] to his [[Distinguished Flying Cross (United States)|Distinguished Flying Cross]] and the [[Air Medal]] for his actions. He becomes the only American pilot to shoot down German, Italian, Japanese, and an American aircraft during [[World War II]].<ref>Hollway, Don, '"Triple Axis Ace," ''Aviation History'', January 2017, pp. 54–56.</ref>
** German Junkers Ju 88s attack Convoy JW 64 in the [[Arctic Ocean]].<ref name="Sturtivant, Ray 1990, p. 105"/>
* February 11 – A jet bomber is shot down in air-to-air combat for the first time, when a Royal Air Force [[Hawker Tempest]] Mark V downs a German ''Luftwaffe'' [[Arado Ar 234B]] ''Blitz'' (Lightning).<ref name="aradojetsin action">Anonymous, "Arado Jets in Action," ''Aviation History'', November 2015, p. 62.</ref>
* February 12 – [[United States Army Air Forces]] [[Twentieth Air Force]] B-29s bomb Iwo Jima. In this raid and their January 24 and 29 raids, they have dropped a combined total of 367 tons (332,940&nbsp;kg) of bombs on the island.<ref name="MSE"/>
* February 13–15 – Allied bombers attack [[Dresden]] with incendiary weapons, destroying most of the city and killing some 50,000 people.
* February 15 – In ten weeks of steady bombardment of Iwo Jima, the U.S. Army Air Forces' [[Seventh Air Force|Seventh]] and Twentieth Air Forces have dropped nearly 6,800 tons (6,168,920&nbsp;kg) of bombs on the island.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 13.</ref>
* February 16
** During the U.S. seizure of [[Corregidor]], the [[United States Army]]'s [[503rd Parachute Infantry Regiment|503rd Parachute Regimental Combat Team]] conducts a [[paratrooper]] assault onto the island.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIII: The Liberation of the Philippines: Luzon, Mindanao, the Visayas, 1944–1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1989, pp. 199, 203.</ref>
** U.S. Navy surface ships conduct a two-day pre-invasion bombardment of Iwo Jima. Operating from the [[escort aircraft carrier]] {{USS|Wake Island|CVE-65}}, U.S. Navy [[VOC-1|Observation Composite Squadron 1 (VOC-1)]] makes the [[Asiatic-Pacific Theater|Pacific Theater]] debut for such squadrons, in which pilots trained in [[artillery]] observation direct surface ship gunfire from [[Fighter (aircraft)|fighters]] and [[torpedo bomber]]s, augmenting or replacing the more vulnerable shipboard [[floatplane]]s carried for that purpose.<ref name="operations20"/>
* February 16–17 – Eleven [[fleet aircraft carrier]]s and five [[light aircraft carrier]]s of the U.S. Navy{{'}}s [[Task Force 58]] conduct the first carrier-based airstrikes against Japan proper since the April 1942 [[Doolittle Raid]], attacking targets in and around [[Tokyo]] and [[Tokyo Bay]]. U.S. Navy aircraft fly 2,761 sorties, claiming 341 Japanese planes shot down and 190 destroyed on the ground, several ships and craft sunk in Tokyo Bay, and damage to Japanese [[airframe]] and [[aircraft engine]] plants in exchange for 60 U.S. aircraft lost in combat and 28 more lost due to non-combat causes.<ref name="operations20">Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, pp.&nbsp;20–25.</ref>
* February 18 – The Horten H.IX V2, the second prototype and first powered prototype of the Horten Ho 229, suffers an engine failure during its third test flight and crashes at Oranienburg, Germany, killing its pilot, ''[[Leutnant]]'' Erwin Ziller.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2009/06/090625-hitlers-stealth-fighter-plane.html |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090627211330/http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2009/06/090625-hitlers-stealth-fighter-plane.html |url-status= dead |archive-date= June 27, 2009 |title=Hitler's Stealth Fighter Re-created |first=Brian |last=Handwerk |work=News.nationalgeographic.com |date= 25 June 2009 |access-date=29 July 2012}}</ref><ref>[http://www.deutscheluftwaffe.de/Flugzeuge/Projekte/Ho%20IX-V2/Flugunfall.htm "Horten Ho 229 V-2 (Ho IX V 2) der Absturz."] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160101153341/http://www.deutscheluftwaffe.de/Flugzeuge/Projekte/Ho%20IX-V2/Flugunfall.htm |date=2016-01-01 }} ''DeutscheLuftwaffe.de'', Retrieved: 21 February 2016.</ref> The third prototype is never completed, and the crash brings the Ho 229 program to an end.<ref name=WilkinsonNov2016/>
* February 19 – U.S. Marine Corps forces invade Iwo Jima, beginning the [[Battle of Iwo Jima|Iwo Jima campaign]].<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, pp.&nbsp;33–46.</ref>
* February 20 – 25 German [[Junkers Ju 88]]s attack [[Convoy RA 64]] with [[torpedo]]es as it steams from the [[Kola Inlet]] to the [[River Clyde]]. [[Grumman F4F Wildcat|Wildcats]] from the British aircraft carriers {{HMS|Campania|D48|6}} and {{HMS|Nairana|D05|6}} shoot down at least three of them.<ref name="Sturtivant, Ray 1990, p. 105"/>
* February 20–21 (overnight) – 13 Japanese air raids strike at U.S. Fifth Fleet ships off Iwo Jima.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 52.</ref>
* February 21 – Japanese ''[[kamikaze]]'' attacks strike U.S. ships off Iwo Jima. They badly damage the aircraft carrier {{USS|Saratoga|CV-3|6}}, which suffers 123 killed and missing and 192 wounded and the loss of 42 aircraft and is out of action for three months; sink the escort carrier {{USS|Bismarck Sea|CVE-95|6}} with the loss of 218 of her crew; and damage the escort carrier {{USS|Lunga Point|CVE-94|6}} and [[Net laying ship|netlayer]] {{USS|Keokuk|CMc-6|6}}. ''Bismarck Sea'' is to date the last U.S. aircraft carrier sunk by enemy action.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, pp.&nbsp;52–56.</ref>
* February 22 – The Allies launch [[Operation Clarion]] a 24-hour campaign where nearly 9,000 Allied aircraft attacked targets across Germany in effort to destroy all means of transportation available. Targets included railway marshalling yards, level crossings and signal boxes, bridges, canal locks and other transport infrastructure.
* February 23 – March 2 – The [[night fighter]] [[Squadron (aviation)|squadron]] aboard {{USS|Enterprise|CV-6}}, operating off Iwo Jima, keeps planes airborne for a record 174 consecutive hours.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 56</ref>
* February 24 – Not realizing that [[Women's Auxiliary Air Force]] [[Leading Aircraftwoman]] Margaret Horton is still sitting on the tailplane of his [[Supermarine Spitfire|Spitfire]] to hold it down while he taxis on a windy day at a British airfield, [[Flight Lieutenant]] Neil Cox takes off with her draped across the tail cone. Ordered to land immediately without knowing why, he returns to base and lands safely, with Horton uninjured.<ref>Wilkinson, Stephan, "Amazing But True Stories," ''Aviation History'', May 2014, p. 30.</ref>
* February 25
** Carrier aircraft of the U.S. Navy{{'}}s Task Force 58 strike targets around Tokyo, but bad weather forces the cancellation of many strikes.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 57.</ref>
** [[Allies of World War II|Allied]] forces capture an intact German Arado Ar 234B ''Blitz'' (Lightning) jet bomber for the first time.<ref name="aradojetsin action"/>
* February 26 – A U.S. Army Air Forces [[Consolidated C-87 Liberator Express|C-87A Liberator Express]] disappears during a flight from [[Kwajalein Atoll]] to [[Johnston Island]] with the loss of all on board, including two Army Air Forces generals, [[Lieutenant General (United States)|Lieutenant General]] [[Millard Harmon]] and [[Brigadier General (United States)|Brigadier General]] [[James Roy Andersen|James R. Andersen]]. 
* February 27 – Off Iwo Jima, the U.S. Navy [[tank landing ship]] {{USS|LST-776}}, specially equipped with booms and cables for launching light aircraft, achieves the first successful launch of an OY-1 Grasshopper observation plane (Stinson L-5).<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 65.</ref>

===March===
* March
** The Mexican airline [[Braniff International Airways#Aerovias Braniff formed|Aerovias Braniff]] begins operations. It has a fleet of three [[Douglas DC-3]]s and flies from [[Mexico City]] and [[Monterrey]], [[Mexico]], to [[Laredo, Texas|Laredo]], [[Texas]].
** The [[United States Army Air Forces]] begins evaluation of the [[Radioplane OQ-17]] [[target drone]] (at this time designated RP-18).
* March 1
**Carrier aircraft of U.S. Navy [[Task Force 58]] strike [[Okinawa Island|Okinawa]] and conduct [[photographic reconnaissance]] flights over Okinawa, [[Kerama Retto]], [[Minami Daito]], and [[Amami O Shima]].<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 58.</ref>
**The world{{'}}s first vertical launch of a crewed rocket takes place when the German [[Bachem Ba 349 Natter]] rocket fighter takes off under rocket power. The 55-second flight ends in tragedy when the aircraft crashes, killing its pilot, ''[[Luftwaffe]]'' [[test pilot]] [[Lothar Sieber]].<ref name="Donald, David 1997, p. 93">Donald, David, ed., ''The Complete Encyclopedia of World Aircraft'', New York: Barnes & Noble Books, 1997, {{ISBN|978-0-7607-0592-6}}, p. 93.</ref>
* March 2 – German forces employ the [[Henschel Hs 297]] surface-to-air anti-aircraft rocket system for the first time, firing it at [[Allies of World War II|Allied]] [[fighter-bomber]]s in the vicinity of [[Remagen]], [[Germany]]. 
* March 4
**Task Force 58 returns to base at [[Ulithi Atoll]]. During its two-week cruise to the Tokyo area and Okinawa its pilots have claimed 393 Japanese aircraft shot down and 250 destroyed on the ground, in exchange for the loss of 84 planes, 60 pilots, and 21 aircrewmen in combat and 59 planes, eight pilots, and six aircrewmen in non-combat incidents.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 59.</ref>
**Low on fuel after a raid on Japan, a B-29 Superfortress lands on Iwo Jima, the first of about 2,400 B-29s to do so before World War II ends in August.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, pp. 65, 72.</ref>
* March 5 – A [[Royal Australian Air Force]] [[Lockheed Hudson]] crashes into the [[Coral Sea]] just off the coast of [[Queensland]], [[Australia]], just north of the mouth of the [[Barron River (Queensland)|Barron River]], killing everyone on board including [[Australian Army]] [[Major general (Australia)|Major Generals]] [[George Alan Vasey|George Vasey]] and [[Rupert Downes]].
* March 6 – [[Operation Spring Awakening]], the last major German offensive of World War II, begins in [[Hungary]]. The ''Luftwaffe'' commits about 900 aircraft in support of the offensive, while 965 aircraft of the Soviet [[17th Air Army]] support the Soviet and Bulgarian defenders.<ref>Spindler, John E., "Panzer Fury in Hungary," ''Military History'', September 2017, pp. 36, 38.</ref> 
* March 9 – Disappointed in [[strategic bombing]] results against [[Japan]] with [[Boeing B-29 Superfortress|B-29 Superfortresses]] employing high-altitude daylight bombing as used in [[Europe]], the [[United States Army Air Forces]]{{'}} [[Twentieth Air Force]] switches to low-altitude night bombing of Japan using [[incendiary bomb]]s for the rest of [[World War II]].<ref>Jablonski, Edward, ''Flying Fortress: The Illustrated Biography of the B-17s and the Men Who Flew Them'', Garden City, New York: Doubleday & Company, Inc., 1965, p. 279.</ref>
* March 9–10 – The [[Bombing of Tokyo|Great Tokyo Air Raid]] ([[USAAF]] codename [[Bombing of Tokyo (10 March 1945)|''Operation Meetinghouse'']]), an overnight [[incendiary bomb]]ing raid by [[Boeing B-29 Superfortress|B-29 Superfortresses]] on [[Tokyo]], is the single most destructive air raid during World War II,<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.wired.com/thisdayintech/2011/03/0309incendiary-bombs-kill-100000-tokyo/ |title=9 March 1945: Burning the Heart Out of the Enemy |date=9 March 2011 |magazine=Wired  |publisher=Condé Nast Digital |access-date=8 August 2011}}</ref> even with the [[atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki]] being considered as single events.<ref>{{Cite book|editor1-last=Craven |editor1-first=Wesley |editor2-last=Cate |editor2-first=James|title=The Pacific: Matterhorn to Nagasaki|publisher=The University of Chicago Press|location=Chicago|year=1953|series=The Army Air Forces in World War II. Volume V|url=http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/AAF/V/index.html|oclc=256469807}}</ref> It creates a [[conflagration]] which destroys {{convert|41|km2|sqmi|sp=us}} of the city, killing an estimated 88,000 to 125,000 people, injuring at least 41,000 and perhaps as many as a million people, and leaving probably a million people homeless.
* March 10 – The [[Government of Poland]] recreates [[LOT Polish Airlines]], which had not operated since 1939. It will resume operations in 1946.
* March 11 – ''[[Luftwaffe]]'' pilot Helmut Gerstenhauer and two copilots arrive at [[Werder (Havel)|Werder]], Germany, completing a flight in a [[Focke-Achgelis Fa 223]] [[helicopter]] begun from [[Tempelhof Airport]] in [[Berlin]] on 26 February. Bound for [[Danzig]], navigational problems and bad weather force them to stop at [[Crailsheim]], [[Würzburg]], and [[Meiningen]] on 26 February, Werder on 27 February (which they reach after a {{convert|315|km|mi|abbr=off|sp=us|adj=on}} flight from Meiningen), [[Prenzlau]] on 28 February, and [[Stolp]] on 1 March, before finally departing Stolp on 5 March and arriving at Danzig later that day after a flight over the advancing [[Soviet Army]]. Ordered to return to Werder, they make a lengthy flight from Danzig to Werder via [[Garz (Usedom)|Garz]]. The entire 13-day journey has covered {{convert|1,675|km|mi|abbr=off|sp=us}} – an unofficial helicopter record at the time – with a flight time of 16 hours 25 minutes.
* March 13–14 – A [[Royal Air Force]] [[Avro Lancaster]] of [[No. 617 Squadron RAF|No. 617 Squadron]] bombs the [[Bielefeld]] Viaduct in Germany in the first operational use of the {{convert|22,000|lb|kg|adj=on}} [[Grand Slam bomb]].
* March 14 – ''Transportes Aéreos Portugueses'', the future [[TAP Portugal]], is founded. It will begin flight operations in [[1946 in aviation#September|September 1946]].
* March 15 – The U.S. Navy assigns responsibility for the evacuation of wounded personnel to the [[Naval Air Transport Service]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.vrc-50.org/historyNATS.htm |title=Chronology of Significant Events in Naval Aviation: "Naval Air Transport" 1941 – 1999 |access-date=2012-12-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160331224444/http://vrc-50.org/historyNATS.htm |archive-date=2016-03-31 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
* March 17 – Training for U.S. Army Air Forces service, American actor [[Bobby Hutchins]] dies in the mid-air collision of two [[North American AT-6 Texan]] trainers at [[Merced Army Airfield]] in [[Merced, California|Merced]], [[California]]. The other pilot survives.
* March 18 – Carrier aircraft of the U.S. Navy{{'}}s [[Task Force 58]] strike [[Kyushu]].<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 94.</ref>
* March 19 – Task Force 58 strikes ships in Japan{{'}}s [[Seto Inland Sea|Inland Sea]], damaging the [[battleship]] {{ship|Japanese battleship|Yamato||2}}, the aircraft carriers {{ship|Japanese aircraft carrier|Amagi||2}} and {{ship|Japanese aircraft carrier|Ryūhō||2}}, and 14 other ships, followed by fighter sweeps over Kyushu.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, pp. 94, 99.</ref> Counterattacks by Japanese aircraft damage the aircraft carriers {{USS|Wasp|CV-18}}, which suffers 101 killed and 269 wounded but remains in action for several more days, and {{USS|Franklin|CV-13}}, which suffers 724 killed or missing and 265 wounded.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, pp.&nbsp;94–98.</ref>  ''Franklin'' survives to limp home to the United States despite near-fatal damage – probably the most severely damaged aircraft carrier every to make it back to port – and never returns to service.
* March 21 – The [[Imperial Japanese Navy]] uses its [[Yokosuka MXY7 Ohka]] ("Cherry Blossom") rocket-powered human-guided anti-shipping ''kamikaze'' attack plane operationally for the first time, but without success.
* March 22 – {{USS|Enterprise|CV-6|6}} is damaged by a [[flight deck]] fire caused by American [[antiaircraft]] fire, and Task Force 58 retires from Japanese waters. During its strikes on Kyushu and the Inland Sea it has claimed 528 Japanese aircraft destroyed; Japan admits to 163 aircraft lost in air-to-air combat and additional Japanese planes destroyed on the ground.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 100.</ref>
* March 23 – April 1 – Task Force 58 conducts strikes on Okinawa and vicinity.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, pp. 101, 112.</ref>
* March 23 – The [[British Pacific Fleet]], centered around the aircraft carriers {{HMS|Indomitable|92|6}}, {{HMS|Victorious|R38|6}}, {{HMS|Illustrious|87|6}}, and {{HMS|Indefatigable|R10|6}}, departs [[Ulithi Atoll]] to begin operations as [[Task Force 57]] of the [[United States Fifth Fleet]].<ref name="operations104"/>
* March 24
** 112 carrier aircraft of Task Force 58 sink an entire convoy of eight Japanese ships {{convert|150|nmi|km|abbr=off}} northwest of Okinawa.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 112.</ref>
** Allied forces begin large-scale crossings of the [[Rhine River]] in [[Operation Varsity]]. The operation involves 2,000 [[Military transport aircraft|transport aircraft]] and [[Glider (aircraft)|gliders]].
* March 25
** Japanese aircraft make their last raid on Iwo Jima. U.S. Army Air Forces [[Northrop P-61 Black Widow|P-61 Black Widow]] [[night fighter]]s based on the island shoot down several of the Japanese planes and drive off the rest.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 68.</ref>
** The Japanese high command issues an alert for [[Operation Ten-Go]], a concentrated air attack against amphibious forces preparing to invade Okinawa.<ref name="operations101">Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 101.</ref>
* March 26
** The United States declares the Iwo Jima operation "completed."<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 67.</ref>
** The British Pacific Fleet conducts its first combat operation as [[Task Force 57]] under the command of the [[United States Fifth Fleet]], launching airstrikes against Japanese airfields on [[Miyako-jima]] in the [[Sakishima Gunto]].<ref name="operations104"/><ref>Hobbs, David, "The Royal Navy's Pacific Strike Force," ''Naval History'', February 2013, p. 28.</ref>
* March 27
** In support of the upcoming U.S. invasion of [[Okinawa Island|Okinawa]], Twentieth Air Force B-29s strike airfields and an aircraft factory on [[Kyushu]] and lay [[naval mine]]s in [[Shimonoseki Strait]].<ref>{{cite book | title=History of United States Naval Operations in World War II Volume 14: Victory in the Pacific 1945 | author = Samuel Eliot Morison | year= 2002 | publisher= University of Illinois Press | isbn= 978-0-252-07065-5 | page= 133 | url= https://books.google.com/books?id=PfrgDPhLkqcC}}</ref>
** A ''[[kamikaze]]'' damages the battleship {{USS|Nevada|BB-36}} off Okinawa, killing 11 and wounding 49.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 133.</ref>
** Flying a [[Yakovlev Yak-3]] with a French fighter group in the [[Soviet Air Force]], [[French Air Force]] pilot [[Roger Sauvage]], history's only [[Black people|black]] fighter ace, scores his 16th and final victory, shooting down a German [[Focke-Wulf Fw 190]].<ref>Guttman, Jon, "History's Only Black Ace," ''Military History'', January 2016, p. 16.</ref>
** The final [[V-2]] missile to hit [[England]] falls in [[Kent]].
* March 31
** Twentieth Air Force B-29s again raid Japanese airfields on Kyushu.<ref name="operations101"/>
** A ''kamikaze'' damages the U.S. [[heavy cruiser]] {{USS|Indianapolis|CA-35|6}} off Okinawa, killing 9 and wounding 20.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 138.</ref>

===April===
* April 1
** The [[Nakajima Aircraft Company]] comes under the control of the Japanese government and is renamed the First Munitions Arsenal.<ref>Francillon, René J., ''Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War'', Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1979, {{ISBN|978-0-87021-313-7}}, p. 21.</ref>
** [[Operation Iceberg]], the American invasion of [[Okinawa Island|Okinawa]], begins the [[Battle of Okinawa|Okinawa campaign]]. Ohkas score hits on the [[battleship]] {{USS|West Virginia|BB-48|6}} and three of her escorts, and a ''kamikaze'' hits the aircraft carrier {{HMS|Indefatigable|R10|6}}, the first British aircraft carrier hit by a ''kamikaze''. ''Indefatigable'' suffers 14 killed, but resumes air operations an hour later.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, pp. 140, 154, 212.</ref><ref name="Hobbs, David 2013, p. 29">Hobbs, David, "The Royal Navy's Pacific Strike Force," ''Naval History'', February 2013, p. 29.</ref>
* April 4 – During trials for [[rubber deck]]s to be installed aboard future aircraft carriers, [[Royal Navy]] [[test pilot]] [[Captain (Royal Navy)|Captain]] [[Eric Brown (pilot)|Eric "Winkle" Brown]] declares an emergency and lands his [[Fleet Air Arm]] [[Bell P-39 Airacobra|Bell Airacobra]] ''[[AH574]]'' aboard the aircraft carrier {{HMS|Pretoria Castle|F61|6}}. It is the world{{'}}s first carrier landing by an aircraft with retractable [[Tricycle gear|tricycle landing gear]].
* April 6 – U.S. Navy aircraft from {{USS|Belleau Wood|CVL-24|6}}, {{USS|Bennington|CV-20|6}}, and {{USS|Hornet|CV-12|6}} strike Japanese airfields and other targets on [[Miyako Jima]] and [[Ishigaki Jima]] in the [[Sakishima Gunto]].<ref>Fredio Samples "Wings Over Sakishima" {{ISBN|978-0-615-39668-2}}</ref>
* April 6–7 – The Japanese begin [[Operation Ten-Go]] with the first and largest of ten major ''Kikusui'' ("Floating [[Chrysanthemum]]") ''[[kamikaze]]'' attacks against [[Allies of World War II|Allied]] naval forces off Okinawa, committing 355 ''kamikazes'' and 341 bombers. On the first day, they sink two [[destroyer]]s, a [[destroyer-minelayer]], a [[tank landing ship]], and two civilian [[ammunition ship]]s and badly damage eight destroyers, a [[destroyer escort]], and a [[minelayer]]. The Americans claim 357 Japanese planes destroyed. On the second day, the Japanese damage the battleship {{USS|Maryland|BB-46|6}}, a destroyer, and a destroyer escort.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, pp.&nbsp;181–198.</ref>
* April 7
** Accompanying B-29 Superfortresses, [[North American P-51 Mustang|P-51 Mustangs]] of the U.S. Army Air Forces{{'}} [[15th Fighter Group|15th]], [[21st Fighter Group|21st]], and [[506th Fighter Group|506th]] Fighter Groups based on [[Iwo Jima]] become the first [[Allies of World War II|Allied]] fighters to escort bombers all the way to [[Tokyo]], Japan, and back. The escort flights last seven to eight hours.<ref>Angelucci, Enzo, ''The American Fighter: The Definitive Guide to American Fighter Aircraft From 1917 to the Present'', New York: Orion Books, 1987, {{ISBN|978-0-517-56588-9}}, p. 335.</ref> Fifty-four B-29s land on Iwo Jima during the day.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 70.</ref>
** 386 carrier aircraft of Task Force 58 attack an [[Imperial Japanese Navy]] task force bound for Okinawa while it is steaming in the [[East China Sea]], sinking the battleship {{ship|Japanese battleship|Yamato||2}}, the [[light cruiser]] {{ship|Japanese cruiser|Yahagi|1942|2}}, and four of their eight escorting destroyers.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, pp.&nbsp;199–209.</ref> It ends the last offensive sortie by Japanese surface ships of World War II.
* April 8 – German test pilot [[Melitta Schenk Gräfin von Stauffenberg]] is shot down and killed, aged 42.
* April 9
** Over 300 Royal Air Force bombers raid the [[dockyard]] at [[Kiel]], Germany. They capsize the German [[Deutschland-class cruiser|"pocket battleship"]] {{ship|German cruiser|Admiral Scheer||2}} with a direct hit and several near misses.<ref>Humble, Richard, ''Hitler{{'}}s High Seas Fleet'', New York: Ballantine Books Inc., 1971, p. 156.</ref>
** The United Kingdom transfers the [[escort carrier]] {{HMS|Biter|D97|6}} to France, which immediately [[Ship commissioning|commissions]] her into the [[French Navy]] as {{ship|French aircraft carrier|Dixmude||2}}. ''Dixmude'' is France's first aircraft carrier since the demilitarization of {{ship|French aircraft carrier|Béarn||2}} in 1942.<ref>Chesneau, Roger, ed., ''Conway{{'}}s All the World{{'}}s Fighting Ships 1922–1946'', New York: Mayflower Books, 1980, {{ISBN|0-8317-0303-2}}, pp. 25, 262.</ref>
* April 10 – The ''[[Luftwaffe]]'' flies its final sortie over the [[United Kingdom]], a reconnaissance mission from [[Norway]] by an [[Arado Ar 234]].
* April 11 – [[British Pacific Fleet]] aircraft carriers launch strikes against [[Formosa]].<ref name="Hobbs, David 2013, p. 29"/>
* April 12–13 – The second Japanese ''Kikusui'' attack on Allied ships off Okinawa includes 145 ''kamikazes'', which attack along with 150 fighters and 45 [[torpedo bomber]]s. U.S. Navy ships and aircraft claim 298 Japanese aircraft destroyed. On April 12, the [[destroyer]] {{USS|Mannert L. Abele|DD-733|6}} becomes the first ship to be sunk by an Ohka. ''Kamikazes'' also hit the battleship {{USS|Tennessee|BB-43|6}}, four destroyers, four destroyer escorts, a [[destroyer-minelayer]], a [[minesweeper]], and several smaller craft.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, pp.&nbsp;222–230.</ref>
* April 13 – British Pacific Fleet aircraft carriers launch a second strike against Formosa. During the April 11 and 13 strikes, their aircraft shoot down at least 16 Japanese planes, destroy additional Japanese aircraft on the ground, and strike airfields and road and railroad targets, for the loss of three British aircraft.<ref name="Hobbs, David 2013, p. 29"/>
* April 14–15 (overnight) – An [[Avro Lancaster]] on a night mission against [[Potsdam]] becomes the last British bomber shot down by a German [[night fighter]] during World War II.<ref>Hinchcliffe, Peter, ''The Other Battle: Luftwaffe Night Aces Versus Bomber Command'', Edison, New Jersey: Castle Books, 2001, {{ISBN|978-0-7858-1418-4}}, p. 32.</ref>
* April 15–16
** Task Force 58 launches fighter sweeps over Kyushu, claiming 29 Japanese aircraft shot down and 51 destroyed on the ground on the first day.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 248.</ref>
** The third Japanese ''Kikusui'' attack on ships off Okinawa includes 165 ''kamikazes''. They sink the destroyer {{USS|Pringle|DD-477|6}} and a minesweeper and damage the aircraft carrier {{USS|Intrepid|CV-11|6}}, three destroyers, a destroyer escort, a minesweeper, and a landing craft.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, pp.&nbsp;235–238.</ref>
* April 16 – The final [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] assault against Berlin begins with strikes by 150 [[Soviet Air Force]] night bombers of the [[4th Air Army|4th]] and [[16th Air Army|16th]] Air Armies against German positions in the early morning hours, coordinated with [[Mortar (weapon)|mortar]] and [[artillery]] attacks. By 1500 hours, 647 Soviet combat aircraft are in the air. The day ends with the Soviet Air Force having flown 5,300 sorties, claiming 131 German aircraft shot down in exchange for 87 Soviet aircraft.<ref>Hardesty, Von, ''Red Phoenix: The Rise of Soviet Air Power 1941–1945'', Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1982, {{ISBN|978-0-87474-510-8}}, pp.&nbsp;210–211.</ref>
* April 18
** A German [[Messerschmitt Bf 109]] fighter intercepts a U.S. Army Air Forces [[Stinson L-5 Sentinel]] liaison aircraft carrying [[United States Army]] [[Lieutenant General (United States)|Lieutenant General]] [[Alexander M. Patch]] from [[Kitzingen]] to [[Öhringen]], Germany. The L-5{{'}}s pilot, [[Technical Sergeant]] [[Robert F. Stretton]], maneuvers his aircraft skillfully enough to evade the Bf 109 and land Patch safely at Öhringen. Stretton later received the [[Distinguished Flying Cross (United States)|Distinguished Flying Cross]] for the flight.<ref>Weirather, Larry, "Saving General Patch," ''Aviation History'', May 2012, pp.&nbsp;18–19.</ref>
** The German [[Flying ace|ace]] [[Johannes Steinhoff]], flying with the Luftwaffe's specialist all-jet squadron [[JV 44]] suffers severe burns and nearly fatal injuries when his [[Messerschmitt Me 262]] crashes on takeoff and explodes; his kill total is 176, including six while flying the Me 262, making him one of history{{'}}s first jet aces. He survives and resumes flying postwar.<ref>Franks, Norman, ''Aircraft vs. Aircraft: The Illustrated Story of Fighter Pilot Combat From 1914 to the Present Day'', London: Grub Street, 1998, {{ISBN|1-902304-04-7}}, p. 153.</ref>
* April 19 – The [[International Air Transport Association]] is founded in [[Havana]], [[Cuba]], with 57 member airlines from 31 countries.
* April 20
** British Pacific Fleet aircraft carriers launch strikes against the [[Sakishima Gunto]].<ref name="Hobbs, David 2013, p. 30">Hobbs, David, "The Royal Navy's Pacific Strike Force," ''Naval History'', February 2013, p. 30.</ref>
** A [[Fairey Swordfish|Swordfish]] from the [[merchant aircraft carrier]] (or "MAC-ship") {{MV|Empire MacAndrew}} drops two [[depth charge]]s on a [[periscope]] sighting position in the last attack on a submarine by a MAC-ship{{'}}s aircraft. During World War II, no submarine makes a successful attack against a [[convoy]] containing a MAC-ship. MAC-ship aircraft have attacked 12 German submarines; although they never sink one, their activities have proven very effective in convoy defense.<ref>Sturtivant, Ray, ''British Naval Aviation: The Fleet Air Arm, 1917–1990'', Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1990, {{ISBN|0-87021-026-2}}, p. 110.</ref>
* April 21 – The [[Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condor|Focke-Wulf Fw 200KB-1 Condor]] ''Hessen'' (registration D-ASHH) attempts the last scheduled flight in the history of [[Deutsche Luft Hansa]], a trip from [[Berlin]] to [[Munich]]. The airliner crashes and burns near [[Piesenkofen]] shortly before its planned arrival in Munich, killing all 21 people on board.<ref>[http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=19450421-5 Aviation Safety Network: Accident Description]</ref>
* April 22 – The last flight in Deutsche Luft Hansa's history, a non-scheduled flight from Berlin to [[Warnemünde]], takes place. After Germany surrenders in May, the [[Allies of World War II|Allies]] dissolve the airline and seize its aircraft.
* April 23 – The [[United States Navy]] puts its first autonomously radar-guided bomb, the [[Bat (guided bomb)|SWOD-9 "Bat"]] into use, dropping it from [[B-24 Liberator|Consolidated PB4Y Liberators]] on Japanese shipping in [[Balikpapan]] Harbour.
* April 24 – Flying a [[Messerschmitt Me 262]], ''Luftwaffe'' [[Flying ace|ace]] [[Günther Lützow]] is killed in combat with U.S. Army Air Forces [[P-47 Thunderbolt]]s near [[Donauwörth]], [[Germany]]. His credited with 110 kills.
* April 25
** 275 [[B-17 Flying Fortress|B-17s]] escorted by four groups of [[P-51 Mustang]]s attack the [[Škoda Works]] armament factory in [[Plzeň]], [[Czechoslovakia]]. It is the last heavy bomber mission by the [[United States Army Air Forces]]{{'}} [[Eighth Air Force]] against an industrial target.
** The incomplete German aircraft carrier {{ship|German aircraft carrier|Graf Zeppelin||2}} is scuttled at [[Stettin]] to prevent her capture by the Soviet Union.<ref name="hazegray.org Graf Zeppelin"/>
* April 26/27 (overnight) – 563 bombers of the [[Soviet Air Force]]{{'}}s [[18th Air Army]] strike Berlin.<ref>Hardesty, Von, ''Red Phoenix: The Rise of Soviet Air Power 1941–1945'', Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1982, {{ISBN|978-0-87474-510-8}}, p. 211.</ref>
* April 27–28 – The fourth Japanese ''Kikusui'' attack on ships off Okinawa includes 115 ''kamikazes.'' They sink an [[ammunition ship]] and damage four destroyers and the [[hospital ship]] {{USS|Comfort|AH-6|6}}.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, pp.&nbsp;238–239, 244.</ref>
* April 30 – May 7 – To divert Japanese attention from [[Operation Dracula]] and suppress Japanese airpower in the [[Andaman Islands|Andaman]] and [[Nicobar Islands]], aircraft from the British aircraft carriers {{HMS|Empress|D42|6}} and {{HMS|Shah|D21|6}} fly 400 sorties over eight days against Japanese airfields and shipping in the islands, losing one aircraft.<ref name="Sturtivant, Ray 1990, p. 127">Sturtivant, Ray, ''British Naval Aviation: The Fleet Air Arm, 1917–1990'', Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1990, {{ISBN|0-87021-026-2}}, p. 127.</ref>

===May===
* The [[United States Strategic Air Forces in Europe|United States Strategic Air Forces]] control about 17,000 aircraft and 500,000 personal in the [[European Theatre of World War II|European Theater of Operations]]
* May 1 – The U.S. Navy{{'}}s mixed-propulsion [[Ryan FR Fireball]] becomes the first aircraft incorporating jet propulsion to qualify for use aboard [[aircraft carrier]]s.<ref name="AE 413">Angelucci, Enzo, ''The American Fighter: The Definitive Guide to American Fighter Aircraft From 1917 to the Present'', New York: Orion Books, 1987, p. 413.</ref>
* May 2 – The British [[East Indies Fleet]]{{'}}s [[21st Aircraft Carrier Squadron]] – consisting of the aircraft carriers {{HMS|Emperor|D98|6}}, {{HMS|Hunter|D80|6}}, {{HMS|Khedive|D62|6}}, and {{HMS|Stalker|D91|6}} – begin support of [[Operation Dracula]], a British assault on [[Rangoon]], [[Burma]]. Their aircraft fly 110 sorties, bombing Japanese forces in support of a British [[amphibious landing]].<ref name="Sturtivant, Ray 1990, p. 127"/>
* May 2–3 – With an attack on enemy airfields, Royal Air Force [[De Havilland Mosquito|Mosquito]]es of No. 8 Group operate the last offensive action in the war by Bomber Command.
* May 3 – Royal Air Force [[Hawker Typhoon]] fighter-bombers sink the German [[passenger ship]]s {{SS|Cap Arcona|1927|6}} and {{SS|Deutschland|1923|6}} and the German [[cargo ship]] {{SS|Thielbek|1940|6}} in the [[Bay of Lübeck]], unaware that the ships are carrying more than 10,000 [[concentration camp]] prisoners. About 5,000 people die aboard ''Cap Arcona'' (the second-greatest loss of life in a ship sinking in history) and about another 2,750 aboard ''Thielbek'', and there also is a heavy loss of life aboard ''Deutschland''.
* May 3–4 – The fifth Japanese ''Kikusui'' attack on ships off Okinawa includes 125 ''kamikazes.'' They sink three destroyers and two smaller ships and damage the aircraft carrier {{HMS|Formidable|67|6}}, the [[light cruiser]] {{USS|Birmingham|CL-62|6}}, four destroyers, a destroyer-minelayer, and three smaller ships.<ref name="operations233">Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, pp. 233, 251–256.</ref>
* May 4
** The British [[Home Fleet]] carries out its last operation of World War II, a raid by 44 [[Grumman TBF Avenger|Avengers]] and [[Grumman F4F Wildcat|Wildcats]] from the aircraft carriers {{HMS|Queen|D19|6}}. {{HMS|Trumpeter|D09|6}}, and {{HMS|Searcher|D40|6}} against [[Kilbotn]], [[Norway]], sinking a German [[depot ship]] and [[submarine]]. It is the last air raid against Norway of World War II.<ref>Sturtivant, Ray, ''British Naval Aviation: The Fleet Air Arm, 1917–1990'', Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1990, {{ISBN|0-87021-026-2}}, p. 90.</ref>
** A strafing attack by a Royal Air Force [[fighter-bomber]] kills German [[Field Marshal]] [[Fedor von Bock]], his second wife, and his stepdaughter as they drive in [[Lensahn]], Germany. He is the only German field marshal killed by enemy action during [[World War II]].
* May 4–5 – Carrier aircraft of the British Pacific Fleet strike airfields on the [[Sakishima Gunto]].<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 264.</ref>
* May 5–6 – The British aircraft carriers HMS ''Emperor'', HMS ''Hunter'', HMS ''Khedive'', and HMS ''Stalker'' resume support of Operation Dracula, bombing Japanese forces south of Rangoon and attacking shipping off Burma{{'}}s [[Tanintharyi Region|Tenasserim]] coast.<ref name="Sturtivant, Ray 1990, p. 127"/>
* May 7 – The [[Royal Air Force]] sinks a German submarine for the last time in World War II.
* May 8
** Flying a [[Messerschmitt Bf 109]], ''[[Luftwaffe]]'' fighter pilot [[Erich Hartmann]] scores his final aerial victory, shooting down a [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] [[Yakovlev Yak-9]] fighter over [[Brno]], [[Slovakia]]. He is the highest-scoring [[Flying ace|ace]] in history, with 352 kills. He surrenders to [[Allies of World War II|Allied]] forces soon afterward.
** '''[[VE Day]]; Germany surrenders, ending the Second World War in Europe.'''
** During World War II, the U.S. Army Air Forces have lost more than 6,500 [[B-17 Flying Fortress]] and [[B-24 Liberator]] bombers over [[Europe]]. In the [[European Theater of World War II|European Theater]], they have lost 23,805 airmen [[killed in action]], 9,299 wounded, and 26,064 captured. In the European, [[Mediterranean and Middle East theatre of World War II|Mediterranean]], and [[North African Campaign|North African]] theaters combined, they have suffered 115,382 casualties.<ref>Bauman, Richard, "The Lucky Bastard Club," ''Aviation History'', November 2014, p. 50.</ref>
* May 9 – British Pacific Fleet carrier aircraft strike the Sakishima Gunto.  ''Kamikazes'' hit the aircraft carriers HMS ''Formidable'' and {{HMS|Victorious|R38|6}}.<ref name="operations265">Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 265.</ref>
* May 10 – Sighting a Japanese [[Kawasaki Ki-45]] ([[World War II Allied names for Japanese aircraft|Allied reporting name]] "Nick" fighter flying high over Okinawa, U.S. Marine Corps [[First Lieutenant]] [[Robert R, Klingman]] in an [[Vought F4U Corsair|F4U Corsair]] gives chase for over 185&nbsp;miles and intercepts the Ki-45 at {{convert|38,000|ft|m}}. Finding his guns frozen, he climbs well above the Corsair{{'}}s service ceiling of {{convert|41,600|ft|m}} and cuts off the Ki-45{{'}}s tail with his propeller in several passes, causing it to crash. He then belly lands safely at [[Kadena Air Base|Kadena field]] on Okinawa.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 269.</ref> He receives the [[Navy Cross (United States)|Navy Cross]] for the action.
* May 10–11 – The sixth Japanese ''Kikusui'' attack off Okinawa includes 150 ''kamikazes''. They damage two destroyers and the aircraft carrier {{USS|Bunker Hill|CV-17|6}}, which suffers 353 killed, 43 missing, and 264 wounded. One of the most heavily damaged aircraft carriers to survive the war, ''Bunker Hill'' is out of service for the rest of World War II.<ref name="operations233"/>
* May 11 – Over three years after [[1942 in aviation#January|its first use in Germany]] to save test pilot Helmut Schenk's life, the [[Martin-Baker]] company makes the first live firing of one of its own [[Ejection seat|ejector seat]] designs.<ref>Mondey, David, ed., ''The Complete Illustrated History of the World{{'}}s Aircraft'', Secaucus, New Jersey: Chartwell Books, Inc., 1978, {{ISBN|0-89009-771-2}}, p. 223.</ref>
* May 12 – A ''kamikaze'' hits the battleship {{USS|New Mexico|BB-40|6}} at [[Hagushi|Hagushi anchorage]], Okinawa.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, pp.&nbsp;267–268.</ref>
* May 12–13 – Carrier aircraft of Task Force 58 strike targets on [[Kyushu]] and [[Shikoku]]. The British Pacific Fleet{{'}}s carriers strike the [[Sakishima Gunto]].<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 263, 265.</ref>
* May 14
**A ''kamikaze'' crashes on the [[flight deck]] of the aircraft carrier {{USS|Enterprise|CV-6|6}}, knocking her out of action for the rest of World War II.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, pp.&nbsp;251–256.</ref>
** The final [[Arctic convoys of World War II|Arctic convoy]] of World War II, [[Convoy JW 67]], departs [[Scapa Flow]] for the [[Kola Inlet]] in the [[Soviet Union]] escorted by the British aircraft carrier {{HMS|Queen|D19|6}}. It returns to the United Kingdom later in the month as [[Convoy RA 67]]. ''Queen''{{'}}s presence as an escort is deemed necessary in case any German submarine commanders opt to ignore Germany{{'}}s surrender and attack the convoy.<ref name="Sturtivant, Ray 1990, p. 105"/>
* May 15 – Aircraft from the British aircraft carrier {{HMS|Emperor|D98|6}} attack the Japanese heavy cruiser {{ship|Japanese cruiser|Haguro||2}} in the [[Indian Ocean]], but achieve only one near-miss.<ref>Sturtivant, Ray, ''British Naval Aviation: The Fleet Air Arm, 1917–1990'', Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1990, {{ISBN|0-87021-026-2}}, pp.&nbsp;127–128.</ref>
* May 16–17 – British Pacific Fleet carrier aircraft strike Japanese airfields in the [[Sakishima Gunto]].<ref name="operations265"/>
* May 18 – A [[F4U Corsair|Corsair]]{{'}}s guns accidentally fire in the [[hangar deck]] of the British aircraft carrier ''Formidable'', striking an [[Grumman TBF Avenger|Avenger]]. The Avenger explodes, starting a fire that destroys 28 planes.<ref name="Hobbs, David 2013, p. 30"/>
* May 20 – 29 aircraft from the British aircraft carriers {{HMS|Ameer|D01|6}}, {{HMS|Khedive|D62|6}}, and {{HMS|Stalker|D91|6}} conduct devastating strikes against Japanese shipping, airfields, and communications in southern Burma and [[Sumatra]].<ref name="Sturtivant, Ray 1990, p. 128">Sturtivant, Ray, ''British Naval Aviation: The Fleet Air Arm, 1917–1990'', Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1990, {{ISBN|0-87021-026-2}}, p. 128.</ref>
* May 23–25 – The seventh ''Kikusui'' attack off Okinawa involves 165 ''kamikazes''. They sink a [[High-speed transport|destroyer-transport]] and two smaller ships and damage a destroyer and a destroyer-transport on May 25.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, pp. 233, 270–271.</ref>
* May 24–25 – British Pacific Fleet carrier aircraft make the final strikes of the war against the Sakishima Gunto, where all Japanese airfields have now been knocked out.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 266.</ref>
* May 24/25 (overnight) – Five [[Imperial Japanese Army]] [[Mitsubishi Ki-21]] ([[World War II Allied names for Japanese aircraft|Allied reporting name]] "Sally") bombers carrying ''[[Giretsu Kuteitai]]'' special airborne attack troops make a suicide raid on [[Kadena Air Base|Kadena]] and [[Yontan Airfield|Yontan]] airfields on Okinawa. Four are shot down, but the fifth belly lands on the principal runway at Yontan and disgorges ten ''giretsu'' troops, who destroy seven and damage 26 planes, blow up two fuel dumps, and kill two Americans and wound 18 before being killed. Japanese planes also bomb [[Ie Shima]] during the night.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, pp.&nbsp;270–271.</ref>
* May 27 – During the Seventh War Bond Air Show at the Army Air Forces Fair at [[Wright Field]] in [[Dayton, Ohio|Dayton]], [[Ohio]], the pilot of a U.S. Army Air Forces [[Curtiss XP-55 Ascender]] fighter prototype (serial number ''42-78847'') attempts a slow roll during an exhibition flight after a low pass with a [[P-38 Lightning]] and [[P-51 Mustang]] on each [[wing]] but loses altitude and crashes, sending flaming debris into occupied civilian ground vehicles on a highway near the airfield. The crash kills the XP-55{{'}}s pilot and between two and four civilians (sources differ) on the ground.<ref>Scott, Roland B., "''Air Mail''", Wings, Granada Hills, California, October 1978, Volume 8, Number 5, page 10.</ref>
* May 27–29 – The eighth Japanese ''Kikusui'' attack off Okinawa involves 110 ''kamikazes''. They sink a destroyer and damage two destroyers, three [[merchant ship]]s, and an [[attack transport]].<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, pp. 233, 259–262, 272.</ref>
* May 31 – [[Middle East Airlines]] is founded. It will begin flight operations in [[1946 in aviation#January|January 1946]].

===June===
* The United States possesses the world{{'}}s first two [[atomic bomb]]s.<ref>[[Ross, Steven T.]], ''American War Plans 1945–1950: Strategies For Defeating the Soviet Union'', Portland, Oregon: Frank Cass, 1996, {{ISBN|0-7146-4192-8}}, p. 12.</ref>
* The [[Nicaragua]]n airline [[LANICA]] is founded. It will begin flight operations in [[1946 in aviation|1946]].
* June 2–3 – Carrier aircraft of [[Task Group 38.4]] strike [[Kyushu]].<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 298.</ref>
* June 3–7 – The ninth ''Kikusui'' attack off Okinawa involves only 50 ''kamikazes'' and causes no significant damage.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, pp. 233, 274.</ref>
* June 5 – A [[typhoon]] strikes U.S. Navy [[Task Force 38]] southeast of Okinawa. The aircraft carriers {{USS|Hornet|CV-12|6}}, {{USS|Bennington|CV-20|6}}, {{USS|Belleau Wood|CVL-24|6}}, {{USS|San Jacinto|CVL-30|6}}, {{USS|Windham Bay|CVE-92|6}}, and {{USS|Salamaua|CVE-96|6}} are damaged and the task force loses 76 aircraft.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, pp.&nbsp;305–307.</ref>
* June 6 – The [[Provisional International Civil Aviation Organization]] (PICAO) is established under the [[Convention on International Civil Aviation]], intended to operate until 26 countries ratify the convention and thereby permit the establishment of a permanent organization.<ref>[http://www2.icao.int/en/tcb/Pages/history.aspx icao.int International Civil Aviation Organisation History] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121231164515/http://www2.icao.int/en/tcb/Pages/history.aspx |date=2012-12-31 }}</ref>
* June 8 – Carrier aircraft of [[Task Group 38.4]] strike Kyushu. Aircraft bombing [[Kanoya Air Field]] employ variable time fuzes on {{convert|260|lb|kg|adj=on}} bombs for the first time as a means of attacking [[Revetment (aircraft)|revetted]] Japanese aircraft.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 307.</ref>
* June 17 – 457 [[Boeing B-29 Superfortress|B-29 Superfortresses]] drop 3,195 tons (2,898,485&nbsp;kg) of bombs on [[Ōmuta, Fukuoka|Ōmuta]] and other cities in Japan.<ref name="ballantine278">Okumiya, Masatake, Jiro Horikoshi, and Martin Caidin, ''Zero! The Story of Japan{{'}}s Air War in the Pacific: 1941–1945'', New York: Ballantine Books Inc., 1956, SBN 345-02242-4-125, {{ISBN|0-345-02242-4}}, p. 278.</ref>
* June 19
** 481 B-29s drop 3,335 tons (3,025,492&nbsp;kg) of bombs on [[Toyohashi, Aichi|Toyohashi]] and other cities in Japan.<ref name="ballantine278"/>
** [[Consolidated B-24 Liberator|B-24 Liberators]] of the U.S. Army Air Forces' [[404th Bombardment Squadron]] make the longest bombing mission flown in the [[North Pacific Area]] during World War II, flying a 2,700-mile (4,348-km) round trip from [[Shemya]] to attack the Japanese base at [[Kruppu]] in the Kurile Islands. The B-24s are in the air for {{frac|15|1|2}} hours.<ref>Garfield, Brian, ''The Thousand-Mile War: World War II in Alaska and the Aleutians'', Fairbanks, Alaska: University of Alaska Press, 1995, {{ISBN|0-912006-82-X}}, p. 394.</ref>
* June 21–22 – The tenth and final Japanese ''Kikusui'' attack off Okinawa involves only 45 ''kamikazes''. They sink a [[medium landing ship]] and the hulk of a [[Ship decommissioning|decommissioned]] destroyer and damage two [[seaplane tender]]s and two smaller ships.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, pp. 233, 278–279.</ref>
* June 22 – 412 B-29s drop 2,290 tons (2,077,474&nbsp;kg) of bombs on [[Kure, Hiroshima|Kure]], [[Wakayama, Wakayama|Wakayama]], and other cities in Japan.<ref name="ballantine278"/>
* June 26 – 468 B-29s drop 3,058 tons (2,774,199&nbsp;kg) of bombs on [[Osaka]] and other cities in Japan.<ref name="ballantine278"/>
* June 28 – 485 B-29s drop 3,519 tons (3,192,416&nbsp;kg) of bombs on [[Okayama]], [[Sasebo, Nagasaki|Sasebo]], and [[Moji-ku, Kitakyūshū|Moji]], Japan.<ref name="ballantine278"/>
* June 30 – [[United States Secretary of War]] [[Henry L. Stimson]] approves a U.S. Army Air Forces request for the [[Douglas Aircraft Company]] to develop an airplane capable of reaching a sustained speed of [[Mach number|Mach 2]] at an altitude of {{convert|30,000|ft|m|abbr=off|sp=us}}, flying for at least 30 minutes, and taking off and landing under its own power.<ref>Guttman, Jon, "Douglas X-3 Stiletto," ''Aviation History'', November 2016, p. 14.</ref>

===July===
* Japan produces 1,131 aircraft, its lowest monthly total since February 1943.<ref>Francillon, René J., ''Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War'', Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1979, {{ISBN|978-0-87021-313-7}}, p. 15.</ref>
* A U.S. Army Air Forces air intelligence report finds that Army Air Forces aircraft had destroyed 30,152 German aircraft during the war in Europe in exchange for 18,418 Army Air Forces aircraft destroyed.<ref>Sweeting, C. G., "Duel in the Clouds," ''Aviation History'', January 2013, p. 56.</ref>
* Several manufacturers have built a combined total of 8,751 [[Airspeed Oxford]]s.<ref>Mondey, David, ed., ''The Complete Illustrated History of the World{{'}}s Aircraft'', Secaucus, New Jersey: Chartwell Books, Inc., 1978, {{ISBN|0-89009-771-2}}, p. 75.</ref>
* [[Avro Canada]] is formed as a part of the [[Hawker Siddeley Group]] and takes over the former [[Victory Aircraft]] factory at [[Malton, Ontario|Malton]], [[Ontario]], [[Canada]].<ref>David, Donald, ed., ''The Complete Encyclopedia of World Aircraft'', New York: Barnes & Nobles Books, 1997, {{ISBN|0-7607-0592-5}}, p. 88.</ref>
* [[Aeropostal Alas de Venezuela]] (LAV) makes its first international flights, inaugurating service between [[Venezuela]] and [[Boa Vista, Roraima|Boa Vista]], [[Brazil]].
* July 1–3 – The U.S. Navy [[escort carrier]]s {{USS|Suwannee|CVE-27|6}}, {{USS|Chenango|CVE-28|6}}, and {{USS|Gilbert Islands|CVE-107|6}} with [[Marine Air Group 2]] embarked support [[Australian Army]] amphibious landings at [[Balikpapan]], [[Borneo]].<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIII: The Liberation of the Philippines: Luzon, Mindanao, the Visayas, 1944–1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1989, p. 272.</ref>
* July 2
** 532 [[Boeing B-29 Superfortress|B-29 Superfortresses]] drop 3,709 tons (3,365 [[metric ton]]s/[[tonne]]s) of bombs on [[Kure, Hiroshima|Kure]], [[Kumamoto City|Kumamoto]], and other cities in Japan.<ref name="ballantine278"/>
** The [[Battle of Okinawa|Okinawa campaign]] is officially declared over with the complete defeat of Japanese forces there. During the campaign, the [[Allies of World War II|Allies]] have lost 32 ships and naval craft sunk and 368 damaged and over 4,900 naval personnel killed and 4,824 wounded. Most of the ships sunk were victims of ''kamikazes''. The [[Allies of World War II|Allies]] also have lost 763 aircraft during the campaign.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 282.</ref>
** The shareholders of [[Aeroput]], Yugoslavia's first civilian airline and the [[flag carrier]] of the [[Kingdom of Yugoslavia]] from 1927 to April 1941, when the [[German invasion of Yugoslavia]] knocked it out of business and destroyed most of its property, meet to restart the airline and its operation. However, [[Jat Airways|JAT Jugoslovenski Aerotransport]] will replace Aeroput in [[1947 in aviation#April|April 1947]], and Aeroput will be dissolved in [[1948 in aviation#December|December 1948]] without having resumed flight operations.
* July 4 – 483 B-29s drop 3,752 tons (3,404 metric tons/tonnes) of bombs on [[Kōchi, Kōchi|Kōchi]] and other cities in Japan.<ref name="ballantine278"/>
* July 5 – The U.S. [[Civil Aeronautics Board]] approves the acquisition of [[American Export Airlines]] (AEA) by [[American Airlines]]. AEA retains a separate identity as a subsidiary of American, but its acquisition allows American to compete with [[Pan American Airways]] in [[Transatlantic flight|transatlantic]] service.
* July 5–11 – Aircraft from the British aircraft carriers {{HMS|Ameer|D01|6}} and {{HMS|Emperor|D98|6}} strike Japanese airfields and shipping at [[Car Nicobar]].<ref name="Sturtivant, Ray 1990, p. 128"/>
* July 7 – 568 B-29s drop 4,227 tons (3,835 metric tons/tonnes) of bombs on [[Chiba (city)|Chiba]] and other cities in Japan.<ref name="ballantine278"/>
* July 10 – Aircraft from the 20 aircraft carriers of U.S. Navy [[Task Force 38]] strike Tokyo and vicinity.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, pp.&nbsp;310–311.</ref> In addition, 536 B-29s drop 3,872 tons (3,513 metric tons) of bombs on [[Sendai]] and other cities in Japan.<ref name="ballantine278"/>
* July 11 – Iceland Airways – the future [[Icelandair]] – makes its first commercial flight over the Atlantic Ocean, using a [[Consolidated PBY Catalina]] to fly four passengers and a crew of four from [[Reykjavík]], [[Iceland]], to [[Largs]], [[Scotland]].
* July 12 – An [[Eastern Air Lines Flight 45]], a [[Douglas DC-3|Douglas DC-3-201C]] en route from [[Boston, Massachusetts|Boston]] [[Massachusetts]], to [[Miami, Florida|Miami]], [[Florida]], with stops in [[Washington, D.C.]] and [[Columbia, South Carolina|Columbia]], [[South Carolina]], collides with a [[United States Army Air Forces]] [[Douglas A-26 Invader|A-26 Invader]] bomber {{convert|3,100|ft|m}} above [[Syracuse, South Carolina|Syracuse]], South Carolina, (about {{convert|20|mi|km}} from [[Florence, South Carolina|Florence]], South Carolina. The commercial pilot, G. D. Davis, lands his [[airliner]] in a cornfield. One passenger, an infant, is killed aboard the airliner. The A-26{{'}}s tail is sheared off; two aboard the bomber die and one is able to parachute safely.
* July 13 – 517 B-29s drop 3,640 tons (3,302 metric tons/tonnes) of bombs on [[Utsunomiya, Tochigi|Utsunomiya]] and other cities in Japan.<ref name="ballantine278"/>
* July 14 – Task Force 38 carrier aircraft fly 1,391 sorties against targets in northern [[Honshu]] and [[Hokkaido]], Japan, without any Japanese air opposition. They destroy 25 Japanese aircraft, sink three [[destroyer]]s, eight [[Auxiliary ship|naval auxiliaries]], and 20 [[merchant ship]]s, and damage a destroyer, three escort craft, and 21 merchant ships.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 311.</ref>
* July 15 – In a second day of air strikes on northern Honshu and Hokkaido, Task Force 38 aircraft completely disrupt the [[Aomori, Aomori|Aomori]]-[[Hakodate]] [[train ferry]] system and sink numerous [[Collier (ship)|colliers]], reducing the Japanese [[coal]]-carrying capacity by 50 percent.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 312.</ref>
* July 16 – 471 B-29s drop 3,678 tons (3,337 metric tons/tonnes) of bombs on [[Numazu, Shizuoka|Numazu]] and other cities in Japan.<ref name="ballantine278"/>
* July 18 – Task Force 38 carrier aircraft conduct heavy strikes against targets along the shore of [[Tokyo Bay]], concentrating on the [[Yokosuka Naval Arsenal]], where they damage the battleship [[Japanese battleship Nagato|''Nagato'']] and sink a [[submarine]], a destroyer, and three smaller vessels.<ref name="operations316">Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 316.</ref>
* July 19 – U.S. Army Air Forces B-29 Superfortresses strike [[Hitachi, Ibaraki|Hitachi]], Japan.<ref name="operations316"/>
* July 20 – 473 B-29s drop 3,255 tons (2,953 metric tons/tonnes) of bombs on [[Fukui, Fukui|Fukui]] and other cities in Japan.<ref name="ballantine278"/>
* July 23 – The Japanese submarines {{Jsub|I-400||2}} and {{Jsub|I-401||2}} depart Japan to launch a surprise air strike on American ships at [[Ulithi Atoll]] using six submarine-launched [[Aichi M6A]] [[floatplane]]s painted in American markings. The two submarines will abort the mission and jettison the aircraft on 16 August when they learn of Japan{{'}}s surrender.
* July 24 – Task Force 38 carrier aircraft fly 1,747 sorties against no air opposition, [[Bombing of Kure (July 1945)|striking targets]] in the [[Seto Inland Sea|Inland Sea]] of Japan in one of the heaviest days of carrier air strikes of World War II. At [[Kure, Hiroshima|Kure]], Japan, they sink the battleship {{ship|Japanese battleship|Hyūga||2}}, the [[heavy cruiser]]s {{ship|Japanese cruiser|Tone|1937|2}} and {{ship|Japanese cruiser|Aoba||2}}, and the obsolete battleship {{ship|Japanese battleship|Settsu||2}} and [[armored cruiser]] {{ship|Japanese cruiser|Iwate||2}}, heavily damage the aircraft carrier {{ship|Japanese aircraft carrier|Amagi||2}}, and damage the aircraft carrier {{ship|Japanese aircraft carrier|Kaiyō||2}}.<ref name="operations331">Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 331.</ref><ref name="combinedfleet.com">[http://www.combinedfleet.com/Kaiyo.htm combinedfleet.com Tabular Record of Movement IJN Kaiyo]</ref> In addition, 570 U.S. Army Air Forces B-29s drop 3,445 tons (3,125 metric tons/tonnes) of bombs on [[Osaka]] and [[Nagoya]], Japan.<ref name="ballantine278"/>
* July 24–26 – Aircraft from carriers of the British [[21st Aircraft Carrier Squadron]] strike Japanese airfields and shipping in northern [[British Malaya|Malaya]].<ref name="Sturtivant, Ray 1990, p. 128"/>
* July 28
** Task Force 38 carrier aircraft again carry out [[Bombing of Kure (July 1945)|heavy airstrikes]] against targets in the Inland Sea without meeting aerial opposition. They sink the aircraft carrier {{ship|Japanese aircraft carrier|Amagi||2}}, the battleships {{ship|Japanese battleship|Haruna||2}} and {{ship|Japanese battleship|Ise||2}}, and the obsolete [[armored cruiser]] {{ship|Japanese cruiser|Izumo||2}} and damage the aircraft carriers {{ship|Japanese aircraft carrier|Katsuragi||2}} and {{ship|Japanese aircraft carrier|Kaiyō||2}}.<ref name="operations331"/><ref name="combinedfleet.com"/> In addition, 548 U.S. Army Air Forces B-29s drop 4,427 tons (4,016 metric tons/tonnes) of bombs on [[Tsu, Mie|Tsu]] and other cities in Japan.<ref name="ballantine278"/>
** A U.S. Army Air Forces [[B-25 Mitchell]] bomber crashes into the 79th floor of the [[Empire State Building]] in [[New York City]], killing 14 people.<ref>"Today in History," ''The Washington Post Express'', July 28, 2011, p. 26.</ref>
* July 29 – U.S. Army Air Forces B-25 Mitchells and U.S. Navy aircraft from the aircraft carrier {{USS|Ticonderoga|CV-14|6}} further damage the Japanese aircraft carrier ''Kaiyo'' in [[Beppu Bay]].<ref name="combinedfleet.com"/>
* July 29–30
** Japanese ''kamikazes'' make their last attacks on ships off Okinawa, damaging two U.S. destroyers.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 280.</ref>
**Carrier aircraft of Task Force 38 strike the [[Maizuru Naval Arsenal]] and the north coast of [[Honshu]], Japan.<ref name="operations331"/>
* July 30 – [[Swissair]] resumes commercial flight operations. It had suspended them for the duration of [[World War II]] in [[1944 in aviation#August|August 1944]].
* July 31 – Since beginning the [[Air Raids on Japan|strategic bombing campaign against Japan]] in June 1944, B-29s of the U.S. Army{{'}}s [[Twentieth Air Force]] have destroyed 67 Japanese cities, leaving only four major cities – [[Kokura]], [[Kyoto]], [[Hiroshima]], and [[Nagasaki]], – undamaged. During July 1945, the B-29s have carried an average bombload of 7.4 tons (6.7 metric tons) per plane – an increase of 4.8 tons (4.4&nbsp;metric tons) since November 1944 – dropped more than 75 percent of their bombs by radar, and suffered a loss rate of only 0.4 percent of aircraft raiding Japan (down from 5.7 percent in January 1945).<ref>Okumiya, Masatake, Jiro Horikoshi, and Martin Caidin, ''Zero! The Story of Japan{{'}}s Air War in the Pacific: 1941–1945'', New York: Ballantine Books Inc., 1956, SBN 345-02242-4-125, {{ISBN|0-345-02242-4}}, {{USD|1.25}}, pp. 276-277.</ref>

===August===
* After spending the [[World War II]] years based at [[Helensburgh]], [[Scotland]], the [[Royal Air Force]]'s [[Marine Aircraft Experimental Establishment]] moves back to its prewar base at [[Felixstowe]], [[Suffolk]].
* August 1 – [[Essair Lines]] becomes the first airline to operate as a "feeder" or "[[local service carrier|local service" airline]], a new category of airline established experimentally by the U.S. [[Civil Aeronautics Board]] to provide commercial air service to smaller communities. Under a temporary certificate to operate in this way, Essair flies routes within [[Texas]]. 
* August 2
** 855 [[Boeing B-29 Superfortress|B-29 Superfortresses]] drop 6,600 tons (5,987 metric tons) of bombs on [[Toyama, Toyama|Toyama]], [[Tachikawa]], and other cities in Japan.<ref name="ballantine278"/> The attack on Toyama is an [[Incendiary bomb|incendiary]] raid that destroys almost the entire city.
** A U.S. Navy [[Lockheed PV-1 Ventura|PV-1 Ventura]] patrol plane discovers survivors of the [[heavy cruiser]] {{USS|Indianapolis|CA-35|6}}, the first indication that ''Indianapolis'' is even missing, 84 hours after she had been sunk by the Japanese submarine {{Jsub|I-58|1943|2}} in the [[Philippine Sea]]. A large [[air-sea rescue]] operation lasts until August 8, but saves only 316 of her crew of 1,199.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, pp.&nbsp;322–327.</ref>
* August 6
** The B-29 Superfortress ''[[Enola Gay]]'' drops the [[atomic bomb]] "[[Little Boy]]," the first [[nuclear weapon]] used in warfare, over the Japanese city of [[Hiroshima]]. In addition, 573 B-29s drop 4,122 tons (3,739 metric tons) of bombs on [[Saga, Saga|Saga]] and other cities in Japan.<ref name="ballantine278"/>
** The top-scoring American [[Flying ace|ace]] of World War II, U.S. Army Air Forces [[Major (rank)|Major]] [[Richard I. Bong]] (40 victories), is killed in the crash of a [[P-80 Shooting Star]] fighter at [[Bob Hope Airport|Lockheed Air Terminal]] in [[Burbank, California|Burbank]], [[California]].
* August 7
** 131 B-29s drop 830 tons (7,529 metric tons) of bombs on the [[Toyokawa Naval Arsenal]] in Japan.<ref name="ballantine278"/>
** The U.S. Army Air Forces redesignate the [[United States Strategic Air Forces in Europe|United States Strategic Air Forces]] as the [[United States Air Forces in Europe]].
* August 8 – 245 B-29s drop 1,296 tons (1,176 metric tons) of bombs on [[Yawata, Kyoto|Yawata]], Japan.<ref name="ballantine278"/>
* August 9
** The B-29 Superfortress ''[[Bockscar]]'' drops the [[Plutonium|plutonium-239]] atomic bomb ''[[Fat Man]]'' on [[Nagasaki]], Japan.
** Carrier aircraft of Task Force 38 conduct devastating strikes against Japanese airfields in northern [[Honshu]] where the Japanese had been marshalling aircraft for a planned major suicide strike on B-29 bases in the [[Mariana Islands]]. The Americans claim 251 Japanese aircraft destroyed and 141 damaged.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 332.</ref>
* August 10
**Task Force 38 aircraft again strike northern Honshu heavily, striking two previously undetected Japanese airfields.<ref name="operations331"/>
** After suffering heavy damage during the airstrikes of July 24, 28, and 29, the Japanese aircraft carrier {{ship|Japanese aircraft carrier|Kaiyō||2}} is abandoned in [[Beppu Bay]] when she lists far enough for the port side of her [[flight deck]] to be underwater. She later will be scrapped in place.<ref name="combinedfleet.com"/>
* August 13 – Carrier aircraft of Task Force 38 strike the Tokyo area, claiming 272 Japanese aircraft destroyed and 149 damaged.<ref name="operations331"/>
* August 13–14 (overnight) – Seven B-29 Superfortresses drop five million [[Leaflet (information)|leaflet]]s over Tokyo, providing the Japanese population for the first time with the news that Japan had accepted the [[Potsdam Declaration]] and was negotiating for peace.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 348.</ref>
* August 15
** Task Force 38 launches its last strike of the war, targeting Tokyo. A second strike jettisons its bombs in the sea when it receives word of the ceasefire agreement with Japan. In the final large dogfight of World War II, 15 to 20 Japanese planes jump six [[Grumman F6F Hellcat|F6F Hellcats]] of U.S. Navy [[VF-88|Fighter Squadron 88 (VF-88)]] from {{USS|Yorktown|CV-10|6}}; the Hellcats shoot down nine Japanese plans in exchange for four of their own.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 334.</ref>
** An [[Imperial Japanese Navy]] [[Nakajima C6N|Nakajima C6N ''Saiun'']] ("Painted Cloud") reconnaissance plane ([[World War II Allied names for Japanese aircraft|Allied reporting name]] "Myrt") is shot down by a [[Lieutenant Commander]] Reidy five minutes before the armistice with Japan takes effect. It is the last confirmed air-to-air victory of World War II.<ref>Francillon, René J., ''Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War'', Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1979, {{ISBN|978-0-87021-313-7}}, p. 439.</ref>
** Seven [[Imperial Japanese Navy]] aircraft make the last ''kamikaze'' attack of World War II.
* August 15 (August 14 east of the [[International Date Line]]) – '''[[VJ Day]]; Japan surrenders, ending the war in the Pacific theater and bringing [[World War II]] to an end.'''
* August 18
** The last aerial combat of World War II takes place when two U.S. Army Air Forces [[386th Bombardment Group]] [[B-32 Dominator]] bombers on a photographic mission come under fire from Japanese forces over [[Tokyo]] despite the official cessation of hostilities three days earlier. After encountering ineffective Japanese antiaircraft fire, the bombers face an attack by Japanese fighters – Imperial Japanese Navy [[Mitsubishi A6M|Mitsubishi A6M5 Zeroes]] (Allied reporting name "Zeke") and what the U.S. airmen report as [[Imperial Japanese Army]] [[Nakajima Ki-44]]s (Allied reporting name "Tojo"), although the latter probably are Japanese Navy [[Kawanishi N1K|Kawanishi N1K-J]]s (Allied reporting name "George"). The Japanese ace [[Saburō Sakai]] pilots one of the fighters, but later claims not to have fired his guns. Gunners aboard the B-32s claim two Japanese fighters shot down and one probable; aboard one of the B-32s, one man is wounded and another killed. It is the last aerial combat of World War II.<ref>[http://www.defensemedianetwork.com/stories/the-last-american-to-die-in-world-war-ii/ Dorr, Robert F., "The Last American to Die in World War II," defensemedianetwork.com, August 14, 2015.]</ref>
** Indian nationalist revolutionary [[Subhas Chandra Bose]] reportedly dies in the crash of a Japanese aircraft at Matsuyama aerodrome (now [[Taipei Songshan Airport]]) at [[Taipei]] on Formosa (now [[Taiwan]]), although the report of his death in the crash has since been disputed.
* August 19 – Two [[Mitsubishi G4M]] ([[World War II Allied names for Japanese aircraft|Allied reporting name "Betty"]]) bombers carry Japan's surrender delegation to [[Ie Shima]].
* August 25 – A U.S. Army Air Forces [[P-38 Lightning]] fighter piloted by [[Colonel]] Clay Tice becomes the first American aircraft to land in Japan following the armistice of August 15.<ref>Angelucci, Enzo, ''The American Fighter: The Definitive Guide to American Fighter Aircraft From 1917 to the Present'', New York: Orion Books, 1987, {{ISBN|978-0-517-56588-9}}, p. 267.</ref>

===September===
* The first U.S. Navy aircraft carriers take part in [[Operation Magic Carpet]], which returns millions of American military personnel to the United States after World War II. Sixty-three U.S. aircraft carriers will take part before the operation concludes in September 1946.<ref>Isenberg, Michael T., ''Shield of the Republic: The United States Navy in an Era of Cold War and Violent Peace, Volume I: 1945–1962'', New York: St. Martin's Press, {{ISBN|0-312-09911-8}}, p. 86.</ref>
* September 2 – At the conclusion of the [[Japanese Instrument of Surrender#Surrender ceremony|surrender ceremony]] aboard the U.S. Navy [[battleship]] {{USS|Missouri|BB-63|6}} in [[Tokyo Bay]], in which Japan formally surrenders to the [[Allies of World War II|Allies]] to end [[World War II]], 450 Allied carrier planes and several hundred U.S. Army Air Forces aircraft perform a victory fly-by over the ships in the bay.<ref>Morison, Samuel Eliot, ''History of U.S. Naval Operations in World War II, Volume XIV: Victory in the Pacific, 1945'', Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1990, p. 367.</ref>
* September 6 – A captured German [[Focke-Achgelis Fa 223]] V14, makes the first [[helicopter]] crossing of the [[English Channel]] when it flies from [[Cherbourg Naval Base]], [[France]], to [[RAF Beaulieu]] in the [[New Forest]], [[Hampshire]], [[England]].<ref>''Air International'', Stamford, Lincs., UK, June 1984, p. 294.</ref>
* September 8 – The first British troops to arrive in the [[Netherlands East Indies]] to accept the surrender of Japanese forces there arrive by air, parachuting into [[Kemayoran Airport]] in [[Jakarta|Batavia]] on [[Java]].<ref name="sejarah08">[http://www.gimonca.com/sejarah/sejarah08.shtml Sejarah Indonesia: An Online Timeline of Indonesian History: The War For Independence 1945 to 1950]</ref>
* September 10 – Five escort carriers of the British [[East Indies Fleet]]{{'}}s [[21st Aircraft Carrier Squadron]] anchor off [[Singapore]] to support [[Operation Zipper]], the British reoccupation of [[British Malaya|Malaya]].<ref name="Sturtivant, Ray 1990, p. 126"/>
* September 12 – The first flight of the U.S. Army Air Forces′ [[Northrop XP-79]]B [[turbojet]] [[flying wing]] fighter prototype ends in tragedy when the aircraft goes out of control during a slow roll and crashes 15 minutes into the flight, spinning vertically into the ground. [[Test pilot]] Harry Crosby is struck by the plane and falls to his death while attempting to bail out. The XP-79 project is cancelled soon afterward.
* September 15 – A [[flypast]] of 300 aircraft takes place over London to celebrate [[Battle of Britain Day]] on the fifth anniversary of the decisive day of combat in the [[Battle of Britain]].{{citation needed|date=May 2020}}
* September 20 – An experimental Gloster Meteor with [[Rolls-Royce RB.50 Trent|Rolls-Royce Trent]] engines makes the first [[turboprop-powered]] flight.
* September 28 – The headquarters of the [[United States Air Forces in Europe]] moves to [[Wiesbaden]], Germany.

===October===
* The Royal Navy cancels five of its eight planned {{Sclass|Centaur|aircraft carrier|0}} aircraft carriers.<ref name="Sturtivant, Ray 1990, p. 161">Sturtivant, Ray, ''British Naval Aviation: The Fleet Air Arm, 1917–1990'', Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1990, {{ISBN|0-87021-026-2}}, p. 161.</ref>
* October 1 – The first annual general meeting of the [[International Air Transport Association]] begins in [[Montreal]], [[Quebec]], [[Canada]].
* October 2 – A U.S. Navy [[PBM Mariner]] [[flying boat]] carrying [[Rear Admiral]] [[William Sample]] and eight others disappears near [[Wakayama, Wakayama|Wakayama]], Japan. The wreckage and their bodies will not be discovered until November 19, 1948.
* October 5 – [[National Airlines Flight 16]], a [[Lockheed Lodestar|Lockheed 18–50 Lodestar]], overshoots the runway and crashes into a lake at [[Lakeland, Florida|Lakeland]], [[Florida]]. Two passengers drown, and several of the 13 survivors are injured.
* October 16 – The U.S. [[Joint Chiefs of Staff]] examine an intelligence report which states that the Soviet Air Force has 35,000 combat aircraft organized into 350 fighter [[Russian Aviation Regiment|regiments]] and 230 bomber regiments, all dedicated either to ground support of the [[Soviet Army]] or home [[air defense]], and that after post-World War II demobilization was complete 410 air regiments would remain. The report states that the Soviet Union has no strategic air force and assesses that it will not field its first atomic bomb until at least 1950.<ref>Ross, Steven T., ''American War Plans 1945–1950: Strategies For Defeating the Soviet Union'', Portland, Oregon: Frank Cass, 1996, {{ISBN|0-7146-4192-8}}, p. 5.</ref>
* October 23 – The U.S. [[Joint Intelligence Staff]] assesses that the Soviet Union will require five to 10 years to field an atomic bomb and create a strategic air force.<ref>Ross, Steven T., ''American War Plans 1945–1950: Strategies For Defeating the Soviet Union'', Portland, Oregon: Frank Cass, 1996, {{ISBN|0-7146-4192-8}}, p. 6.</ref>
* October 24 – Using a [[Douglas C-54 Skymaster]], [[American Export Airlines]] (AEA) begins the first scheduled commercial [[transatlantic flight|transatlantic]] airline service by a landplane, operating between [[New York City]] and [[London]]. Since the new [[London-Heathrow]] airport is not yet available for commercial operations, AEA uses [[Bournemouth-Hurn Airport]].
* October 27 – British aircraft drop leaflets over [[Surabaya]] on [[Java]] in the [[Netherlands East Indies]] demanding that [[Indonesia|Indonesian Republican]] forces surrender to British forces.<ref name="sejarah08"/>

===November===
* The Royal Navy cancels all three of its planned {{Sclass|Malta|aircraft carrier|1}}s.<ref name="Sturtivant, Ray 1990, p. 161"/>
* The report of the [[United States Strategic Bombing Survey]] on the results of [[strategic bombing]] in World War II is made public. Its critics view its findings as debatable or capable of supporting any position on the effectiveness of air power.<ref>Isenberg, Michael T., ''Shield of the Republic: The United States Navy in an Era of Cold War and Violent Peace, Volume I: 1945–1962'', New York: St. Martin's Press, {{ISBN|0-312-09911-8}}, pp.&nbsp;105–106.</ref>
* American Export Airlines is renamed [[American Overseas Airlines]].
* November 3
** The U.S. [[Joint Intelligence Committee (United States)|Joint Intelligence Committee]] reports on the Soviet Union{{'}}s vulnerability to atomic attack, finding that the United States does not have enough atomic weapons to destroy the Soviet [[transportation system]], [[power grid]], or [[metals]] industry, or to be useful on conventional battlefields. It recommends that in the event of war the U.S. Army Air Forces make atomic strikes against 20 Soviet cities in an attempt to destroy [[research and development]] centers, administrative centers, and [[munitions]] and aircraft factories, but notes that the small yields of contemporary bombs means that even attacks that successfully bomb cities may be too inaccurate to destroy the intended targets.<ref>Ross, Steven T., ''American War Plans 1945–1950: Strategies For Defeating the Soviet Union'', Portland, Oregon: Frank Cass, 1996, {{ISBN|0-7146-4192-8}}, pp.&nbsp;14–15.</ref>
** The [[Pan American World Airways]] [[Boeing 314]] [[flying boat]] ''[[Honolulu Clipper]]'', operating on an [[Operation Magic Carpet]] flight carrying 26 American servicemen home to the [[United States]] after World War II, makes a forced landing in the [[Pacific Ocean]] 650 miles east of [[Oahu]] in the [[Hawaiian Islands]] without injury to passengers or crew, all of whom are rescued by a [[Tanker (ship)|tanker]] the following morning. U.S. Navy attempts to repair the aircraft fail, as do Navy efforts to tow it, and the Navy eventually sinks ''Honolulu Clipper'' by gunfire on November 14.
* November 6 – After its [[piston engine]] fails, a mixed-propulsion [[Ryan FR Fireball|Ryan FR-1 Fireball]] fighter flown by [[U.S. Marine Corps]] pilot J. C. West makes the first landing under jet power on an [[aircraft carrier]], landing aboard {{USS|Wake Island|CVE-65|6}}.<ref>Angelucci, Enzo, ''The American Fighter: The Definitive Guide to American Fighter Aircraft From 1917 to the Present'', New York: Orion Books, 1987, pp. 298, 413.</ref>
* November 7 – Royal Air Force [[Group Captain]] H. J. Wilson sets a new official airspeed record of {{convert|606|mph|km/h|abbr=on}} in a [[Gloster Meteor]]. Unofficial German speed records by the rocket-powered [[Messerschmitt Me 163]] during the war had already exceeded {{convert|625|mph|km/h|abbr=on}} on October 2, 1941, and {{convert|1,130|km/h|mph|abbr=on}} on July 6, 1944.
* November 9 – After curtailing service during [[World War II]], flying only a single route between [[Dublin]] and [[England]] – to either [[Liverpool]] or [[Barton Aerodrome]] in [[Manchester]] depending on the security situation at the time – [[Aer Lingus]] restores its full flight schedule post-war. It inaugurates the return of its full flight schedule with a flight to [[London]]. 
* November 10
** On [[Java]] in the [[Netherlands East Indies]], British airstrikes support the opening of an offensive by British and [[British India]]n troops to take [[Surabaya]] from [[Indonesia|Indonesian nationalist]] forces during the [[Battle of Surabaya]], part of the [[Indonesian National Revolution]].<ref>Vaisutus, Justine, at. al., ''Lonely Planet: Indonesia'', January 2007, pp. 43–44.</ref>
** [[South African Airways]] opens its first route to Europe when one of its [[Avro York]] airliners lands at [[Bournemouth]], [[England]], after a flight from [[Palmietfontein]] near [[Johannesburg]], [[South Africa]].
* November 16 – [[Pan American World Airways]] resumes [[Commercial aviation|commercial]] [[seaplane]] service between [[California]] and [[Hawaii]], using [[Boeing 314|Boeing Clipper]] aircraft it has leased to the U.S. Navy during World War II.<ref>[http://hawaii.gov/hawaiiaviation/chronology-of-aviation-in-hawaii/1940-1949 Aviation Hawaii: 1940–1949 Chronology of Aviation in Hawaii]</ref>
* November 20 – A [[United States Army Air Forces]] [[Boeing B-29 Superfortress]] flies from [[Guam]] to [[Washington, D.C.]], setting a new world unrefueled nonstop flight distance record of {{convert|12,739.6|km|mi|abbr=off|sp=us}}.

===December===
* December 4 – A [[de Havilland Vampire|de Havilland Sea Vampire Mk 5]] becomes the first [[jet aircraft]] to intentionally take off and land from an [[aircraft carrier]], {{HMS|Ocean|R68|6}}.<ref>"First Jet Landing." ''Naval Aviation News'', United States Navy, March 1946, p. 6. The first jet aircraft to operate from an aircraft carrier was the unconventional composite propeller-jet [[Ryan Aeronautical Company|Ryan]] [[FR Fireball]], but it was designed to utilize its [[Reciprocating engine|piston engine]] during takeoff and landing. On 6 November 1945, the piston engine of an FR-1 failed on final approach and the pilot started the jet engine and landed, thereby performing the first jet-powered carrier landing, albeit unintentionally.</ref><ref>Angelucci, Enzo, ''The American Fighter: The Definitive Guide to American Fighter Aircraft From 1917 to the Present'', New York: Orion Books, 1987, p. 298, states that the Sea Vampire's landing was on December 3, 1945.</ref>
* December 5 – [[Flight 19]], a formation of five U.S. Navy [[Grumman TBF Avenger|TBM Avengers]] with a total of 14 men aboard, vanishes without trace over the Atlantic Ocean east of [[Florida]]. A U.S. Navy [[Martin PBM Mariner|PBM-5 Mariner]] [[flying boat]] sent to search for the Avengers also disappears with the loss of all 13 men aboard, apparently the victim of an accidental mid-air explosion.
* December 8 – The U.S. [[Joint Chiefs of Staff]] release a report on the effect of [[atomic weapon]]s on warfare. It finds that there is no effective defense against atomic weapons and that the appearance of such weapons in the hands of an adversary would seriously degrade American [[national security]]. It also notes that the Soviet Union has better air defenses than does the United States, leaving the United States more vulnerable to atomic attack. It finds that in a war with the Soviet Union, the United States will have to seize forward bases from which to launch bombers for nuclear strikes, and that the United States will have to strike first to preempt a Soviet nuclear attack if the Soviet Union develops an atomic arsenal and the United States detects preparations for such an attack.<ref>Ross, Steven T., ''American War Plans 1945–1950: Strategies For Defeating the Soviet Union'', Portland, Oregon: Frank Cass, 1996, {{ISBN|0-7146-4192-8}}, p. 14.</ref>
* December 21 – The first flight by an American [[turboprop]]-powered aircraft takes place, when the [[Consolidated Vultee XP-81]], previously flown with a [[piston engine]], flies under turboprop power for the first time.<ref name="anon">Anonymous, "Mystery Ship Answer," ''Aviation History'', January 2011, p. 12.</ref>

== First flights ==
* [[Aeronca 11 Chief]]
* [[Auster A.O.P.6]]
* Prototype of the [[Cessna 195|Cessna 190 and 195 Businessliner]]
* [[Cierva W.9]]
* [[Ilyushin Il-16]]
* [[Thorp T-211]]
* [[Yokosuka D3Y|Yokosuka D3Y ''Myojo'']] ("Venus")

===January===
* January 26
**McDonnell XFD-1, prototype of the FD Phantom, later redesignated [[McDonnell FH Phantom|FH Phantom]], the first [[jet aircraft]] to operate from a [[U.S. Navy]] [[aircraft carrier]].<ref>Angelucci, Enzo, ''The American Fighter: The Definitive Guide to American Fighter Aircraft From 1917 to the Present'', New York: Orion Books, 1987, p. 297.</ref>
** [[Miles Aerovan|Miles M.57 Aerovan]]<ref>Brown 1970, p. 290</ref>

===February===
* February 1 – [[Kawasaki Ki-100]]<ref name="Francillon, René J. 1979, p. 130">Francillon, René J., ''Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War'', Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1979, {{ISBN|978-0-87021-313-7}}, p. 130.</ref>
* February 2 – Horten H.IX V2, first powered prototype of the [[Horten Ho 229]]<ref name = "bbc 229"/>
* February 6 – [[Morane-Saulnier Vanneau|Morane-Saulnier MS.470]]<ref>de Narbonne ''Le Fana de l'Aviation'' February 2005, p. 73</ref> 
* February 7 or 11<ref>Angelucci, Enzo, ''The American Fighter: The Definitive Guide to American Fighter Aircraft From 1917 to the Present'', New York: Orion Books, 1987, p. 98.</ref> – [[Consolidated-Vultee XP-81]] (with piston engine)<ref name="anon"/>
* February 21 – [[Hawker Sea Fury]] prototype ''SR661''
* February 23 – [[Bachem Ba 349 Natter]] (first vertical launch under rocket power)<ref name="Donald, David 1997, p. 93"/>
* February 25 – [[Bell XP-83]]<ref>Donald, David, ed., ''The Complete Encyclopedia of World Aircraft'', New York: Barnes & Noble Books, 1997, {{ISBN|0-7607-0592-5}}, p. 117.</ref>
* February 26 – [[Sud-Ouest Bretagne|SNCASO SO.30N]]<ref name="fan423p74">de Narbonne ''Le Fana de l'Aviation'' February 2005, p. 74</ref>
* February 27 – [[Curtiss XF15C]]<ref>Angelucci, Enzo, ''The American Fighter: The Definitive Guide to American Fighter Aircraft From 1917 to the Present'', New York: Orion Books, 1987, p. 179.</ref>
* February 27 – [[Bréguet 500 Colmar]]<ref name="fan423p74"/>

===March===
* [[Nakajima Ki-115|Nakajima Ki-115 ''Tsurugi'']] ("Sabre")<ref>Francillon, René J., ''Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War'', Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1979, {{ISBN|978-0-87021-313-7}}, p. 242.</ref>
* March 1 – [[Bachem Ba 349]] (first crewed vertical launch under rocket power)<ref name="Donald, David 1997, p. 93"/>
* March 2 – [[Hispano Aviación HA-1109]]-J1L
* March 3 – [[Mikoyan-Gurevich I-250 (N)]], first [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] thermojet
* March 7 – [[Piasecki HRP Rescuer]]
* March 15 – [[SNCASO SO.3050]]<ref>de Narbonne ''Le Fana de l'Aviation'' March 2005, p. 72</ref>
* March 18 – Douglas XB2D-1, prototype of the [[AD Skyraider]]

===April===
* [[Kokusai Ki-105|Kokusai Ki-105 ''Ohtori'']] ("Phoenix")<ref>Francillon, René J., ''Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War'', Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1979, {{ISBN|978-0-87021-313-7}}, p. 485.</ref>
* [[Nakajima Ki-87]]<ref>Francillon, René J., ''Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War'', Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1979, {{ISBN|978-0-87021-313-7}}, p. 240.</ref>
* [[Rikugun Ki-93]]<ref>Francillon, René J., ''Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War'', Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1979, {{ISBN|978-0-87021-313-7}}, p. 244.</ref>
* April 15 – North American XP-82, prototype of the [[North American P-82 Twin Mustang|P-82 Twin Mustang]]<ref>Angelucci, Enzo, ''The American Fighter: The Definitive Guide to American Fighter Aircraft From 1917 to the Present'', New York: Orion Books, 1987, p. 340.</ref>
* April 19 – [[de Havilland Sea Hornet]] prototype ''PX212''
* April 27 – [[Pilatus P-2]]

===May===
* May 8 – [[Yokosuka R2Y|Yokosuka R2Y1 ''Keiun'']] ("Beautiful Cloud"), piston-engined prototype of the R2Y2, projected as the first Japanese jet attack aircraft<ref>Francillon, René J., ''Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War'', Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1979, {{ISBN|978-0-87021-313-7}}, p. 474.</ref>
* May 17 – Lockheed XP2V-1 ''Bu48237'', prototype of the [[Lockheed P-2 Neptune|P2V Neptune]] (later P-2 Neptune)<ref>Polmar, Norman, "Historic Aircraft: The God of the Sea's Namesake", ''Naval History'', October 2011, p. 16.</ref>

===June===
* June 3 – [[Miles M.64 L.R.5]]<ref>Brown 1970, p. 314</ref>
* June 10 – [[Ilyushin Il-16|Ilyushin IL-16]]
* June 14 – [[Avro Tudor|Avro Tudor 1]] ''G-AGPF'', the first British pressurised civilian aircraft
* June 22 – [[Vickers VC.1 Viking|Vickers Viking]] prototype ''G-AGOK''
* June 28 – [[Cessna 140]]

===July===
* July 3 – [[Northrop F-15 Reporter]]
* July 5 – [[Fairey Spearfish]] prototype ''RA356''
* July 7 – [[Mitsubishi J8M|Mitsubishi J8M ''Shusui'']] ("Sword Stroke"),<ref>Francillon, René J., ''Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War'', Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1979, {{ISBN|978-0-87021-313-7}}, p. 406.</ref> first Japanese rocket-powered aircraft
*July 7 – [[Arsenal VB 10]]<ref>de Narbonne ''Le Fana de l'Aviation'' July 2005, p. 71</ref>
* July 23 – [[Max Holste MH.52]]<ref>de Narbonne ''Le Fana de l'Aviation'' July 2005, p. 74</ref>

===August===
* August 3 – [[Kyushu J7W|Kyushu J7W ''Shinden'']] ("Magnificent Lightning")<ref>Francillon, René J., ''Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War'', Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1979, {{ISBN|978-0-87021-313-7}}, p. 338.</ref>
* August 7 – [[Nakajima Kikka|Nakajima ''Kikka'']] ("Orange Blossom"), first Japanese jet<ref>Francillon, René J., ''Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War'', Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1979, {{ISBN|978-0-87021-313-7}}, pp.&nbsp;443–444.</ref>
* August 13 – [[Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-8]] ''Utka'' ("Duck", from its [[Canard (aeronautics)|canard design]], as in the French word ''canard'' for "duck")
* August 15 – [[Ilyushin Il-12]] ([[NATO reporting name]] "Coach")

===September===
* September 1 – [[Morane-Saulnier MS.560]]<ref>de Narbonne ''Le Fana de l'Aviation'' September 2005, p. 76</ref>
* September 5 – [[Douglas C-74 Globemaster]]
* September 12 – [[Northrop XP-79B Flying Ram]]<ref>Angelucci, Enzo, ''The American Fighter: The Definitive Guide to American Fighter Aircraft From 1917 to the Present'', New York: Orion Books, 1987, {{ISBN|978-0-517-56588-9}}, p. 368.</ref>
* September 25 – [[de Havilland Dove]]

===October===
* October 4 — [[SNCASE SE-2100]]<ref>de Narbonne ''Le Fana de l'Aviation'' October 2005, p. 70</ref>
* October 6 — [[SCAN 20]]<ref>de Narbonne ''Le Fana de l'Aviation'' October 2005, p. 73</ref>
* October 26 – [[Miles Gemini|Miles M.65 Gemini]]<ref>Brown 1970, p. 316</ref>
* October 26 — [[SNCASE SE-2300]]<ref>de Narbonne ''Le Fana de l'Aviation'' October 2005, p. 75</ref>
* October 27 – [[Bristol Buckmaster]]
* October 28 – [[LWD Szpak]]

===November===
* November 10 – [[Yakovlev Yak-11]]
* November 13 – [[Bellanca 14-13|Bellanca 14–13 Cruisair Senior]]
* November 15 – [[PZL S-1]]
* November 20 – [[Saab 91 Safir]]<ref>Andersson 1989, 9.93</ref>

===December===
* December 2
**[[Bristol 170]] ''G-AGPV''
**[[Handley Page Hermes]] ''G-AGSS''
* December 8 – [[Bell 47]] prototype<ref>David, Donald, ed., ''The Complete Encyclopedia of World Aircraft'', New York: Barnes & Nobles Books, 1997, {{ISBN|0-7607-0592-5}}, p. 109.</ref> ''NC1H''
* December 15 - [[Nord Norécrin]]<ref>de Narbonne ''Le Fana de l'Aviation'' December 2005, pp. 74–75</ref>
* December 19
** Grumman XTB3F-1, prototype of the [[AF Guardian]]<ref>Swanborough, Gordon, and Peter M. Bowers, ''United States Navy Aircraft Since 1911'', London: Putnam, 1976, {{ISBN|978-0-370-10054-8}}, p. 226.</ref>
** [[Morane-Saulnier MS.570]]<ref>de Narbonne ''Le Fana de l'Aviation'' December 2005, pp. 75–76</ref>
* December 21 [[Consolidated Vultee XP-81]] (with [[turboprop]] engine, first American turboprop-powered flight)<ref name="anon"/>
* December 22 – [[Beechcraft Bonanza]]<ref>David, Donald, ed., ''The Complete Encyclopedia of World Aircraft'', New York: Barnes & Nobles Books, 1997, {{ISBN|0-7607-0592-5}}, p. 98.</ref>
* December 28 – Edo XOSE-1, prototype of the [[Edo OSE]]<ref>Dorr, Robert F., "Mystery Ship Answer," ''Aviation History'', March 2013, p. 12.</ref>

== Entered service ==

===January===
* [[Ilyushin Il-10]] in the [[Soviet Air Force]]
* Two [[Lockheed P-80 Shooting Star|YP-80A]] jet fighters were deployed to [[Foggia Airfield Complex|Lesina Airfield]] in southeastern Italy, with the [[1st Operations Group|1st Fighter Group]]

===March===
* [[Ryan FR Fireball]] with U.S. Navy [[VF-66|Fighter Squadron 66 (VF-66)]]<ref name="AE 413"/>
*March 9 – [[Kawasaki Ki-100]] fighter and interceptor with the 111th Sentai of the [[Imperial Japanese Army Air Service]].<ref name="Francillon, René J. 1979, p. 130"/>
* March 21 – [[Yokosuka MXY7 Ohka|Yokosuka MXY7 ''Ohka'']] ("Cherry Blossom"), [[World War II Allied names for Japanese aircraft|Allied reporting name]] "Baka") rocket-propelled suicide aircraft with the [[Imperial Japanese Navy]]{{'}}s 721st Naval Air Corps<ref>Francillon, René J., ''Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War'', Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1979, {{ISBN|978-0-87021-313-7}}, p. 477.</ref>

===May===
* May 21
**[[Avro Lincoln]] with the [[Royal Air Force]]{{'}}s [[Bomber Development Unit]]<ref>Donald, David, ed., ''The Complete Encyclopedia of World Aircraft'', New York: Barnes & Noble Books, 1997, {{ISBN|978-0-7607-0592-6}}, p. 84.</ref>
**[[Grumman F8F Bearcat]] with U.S. Navy [[VF-19|Fighter Squadron 19 (VF-19)]]<ref>Swanborough, Gordon, and Peter M. Bowers, ''United States Navy Aircraft Since 1911'', London: Putnam, 1976, {{ISBN|978-0-370-10054-8}}, p. 224.</ref>

===August===
* [[Avro Lincoln]] with [[No. 57 Squadron RAF]]

===November===
* [[Aeronca Champion]]
* [[Hawker Tempest|Hawker Tempest II]] with [[No. 54 Squadron RAF]]

==Retirements==
* [[Avro 626]]

===May===
* May 25 – [[Handley Page H.P.54 Harrow]]

== References ==
{{reflist|colwidth=30em}}

* {{cite book |last=Andersson |first=Hans G. |title=Saab Aircraft since 1937 |year=1989 |location=Washington, DC |publisher=Smithsonian Institution Press |isbn=0-87474-314-1}}
* {{cite book |last=Brown |first=Don L. |title=Miles Aircraft since 1925 |year=1970 |location=London |publisher=Putnam & Company, Limited |isbn=0-370-00127-3}}
* {{cite magazine |last=de Narbonne |first=Roland |title=Février 1945, dans l'aéronautique française: La renaissance du Phénix |magazine=Le Fana de l'Aviation |date=February 2005 |issue=423 |pages=70–74 |language=fr}}
* {{cite magazine |last=de Narbonne |first=Roland |title=Mars 1945, dans l'aéronautique française: Deux extrêmes |magazine=Le Fana de l'Aviation |date=March 2005 |issue=424 |pages=72–74 |language=fr}}
* {{cite magazine |last=de Narbonne |first=Roland |title=Juillet 1945, dans l'aéronautique française: Un échec cuisant et un succès sans suite |magazine=Le Fana de l'Aviation |date=July 2005 |issue=428 |pages=71–74 |language=fr}}
* {{cite magazine |last=de Narbonne |first=Roland |title=Septembre 1945, dans l'aéronautique française: Une réussite sans suite: Morane 560, un bel héritage: Nord 1100 "Noralpha" |magazine=Le Fana de l'Aviation |date=September 2005 |issue=430 |pages=76–79 |language=fr}}
* {{cite magazine |last=de Narbonne |first=Roland |title=Octobre 1945, dans l'aéronautique française: Trois espoirs déçus |magazine=Le Fana de l'Aviation |date=October 2005 |issue=431 |pages=70–75 |language=fr}}
* {{cite magazine |last=de Narbonne |first=Roland |title=Decembre 1945, dans l'aéronautique française: Cinq prototypes et beaucoup d'inquiétude |magazine=Le Fana de l'Aviation |date=December 2005 |issue=433 |pages=70–77 |language=fr}}
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