# High level bombing > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/High_level_bombing > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/High_level_bombing.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_level_bombing > Source revision: 1325310794 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) **High level bombing** (also called **high-altitude bombing**) is a tactic of [fixed-wing](/source/Fixed-wing) [bomber](/source/Bomber) [aircraft](/source/Aircraft) in [level flight](/source/Aircraft_flight_mechanics#Straight_and_level_flight_of_aircraft) dropping [aerial bombs](/source/Aerial_bomb) from high [altitude](/source/Altitude). The term is used to contrast with both [World War II](/source/World_War_II)-era [dive bombing](/source/Dive_bombing)[1] and modern medium/low-altitude [close air support](/source/Close_air_support) bombing, in both of which the attacking aircraft is directly subjected to [anti-aircraft fires](/source/Anti-aircraft_warfare) from the ground. Prior to the modern age of [precision-guided munitions](/source/Precision-guided_munition) (PGMs), high level bombing was primarily used for [strategic bombing](/source/Strategic_bombing) — a form of [indiscriminate](/source/Indiscriminate_attack) [area bombardment](/source/Area_bombardment) [of cities](/source/Aerial_bombing_of_cities) and [industrial estates](/source/Industrial_estate) aiming to inflict mass damage and [psychological stress](/source/Psychological_stress) on the [enemy](/source/Enemy)'s [home front](/source/Home_front) economy and population — not for attacks on specific [front line](/source/Front_line) or [rear](/source/Rear_(military)) targets on the [battlefield](/source/Battlefield). High level bombing missions have been flown by many different types of aircraft, including [medium bombers](/source/Medium_bomber), [heavy bombers](/source/Heavy_bomber), [strategic bombers](/source/Strategic_bomber) and [fighter-bombers](/source/Fighter-bomber). The choice to use high level bombing as an offensive tactic of [aerial warfare](/source/Aerial_warfare) is dependent not only upon the inherent accuracy and effectiveness of the bombing aircraft and their delivered [ordnance](/source/Aircraft_ordnance) on the target, but also upon a target's [air defense](/source/Anti-aircraft_warfare) capabilities. From the 1940s onward, [radar](/source/Radar) in particular became a powerful new defensive [early warning](/source/Chain_Home) tool, and a serious threat to attacking aircraft when they flew at higher altitudes towards their target. Bombing from medium to high altitudes, especially in the post-World War II era with sophisticated [surface-to-air missiles](/source/Surface-to-air_missile), [interceptor aircraft](/source/Interceptor_aircraft) and [radars](/source/Radar) exposes attacking bomber aircraft to greater risks of detection, interception and destruction. During [World War II](/source/World_War_II), various methods were employed to protect high level bombers from [flak](/source/Anti-aircraft_warfare#Second_World_War), [fighter aircraft](/source/Fighter_aircraft) and radar detection, including defensive [armament](/source/Gun_turret#Aircraft), [escort fighters](/source/Escort_fighter), [chaff](/source/Chaff_(countermeasure)) and [electronic jamming](/source/Radar_jamming_and_deception). Modern [stealth aircraft](/source/Stealth_aircraft) technologies, for example, can alleviate some risks inherent to high level bombing missions, but are not a guarantee of success or permanent solution for the attackers. ## World War II Further information: [Strategic bombing during World War II](/source/Strategic_bombing_during_World_War_II) and [Air warfare of World War II](/source/Air_warfare_of_World_War_II) High level bombers were primarily used by the [Allies](/source/Allies_of_World_War_II) for [carpet bombing](/source/Carpet_bombing) (particularly later in the war), such as the [bombing of Dresden](/source/Bombing_of_Dresden_in_World_War_II) or [Tokyo](/source/Bombing_of_Tokyo). They were also deployed in other kinds of missions such as [Operation Tidal Wave](/source/Operation_Tidal_Wave), [Operation Crossbow](/source/Operation_Crossbow), and the [sinking of the Tirpitz](/source/Operation_Catechism). After initial operations by day suffered heavy losses, the British switched to night-time [sorties](/source/Sortie) where the darkness gave some protection against German fighters. [Arthur "Bomber" Harris](/source/Arthur_Harris)'s strategy for the [RAF Bomber Command](/source/RAF_Bomber_Command) was to attack area targets that the bombers could be more certain of hitting at night, while the [U.S.](/source/United_States) preferred daylight, [precision bombing](/source/Precision_bombing) techniques.[2] The development since the 1930s of [gyroscope](/source/Gyroscope)-stabilised optical [bombsights](/source/Bombsight), such as the [Norden bombsight](/source/Norden_bombsight), also helped the Allied air forces' ability to accurately strike their targets with medium- to high-altitude level bombing attacks. [Nazi Germany](/source/Nazi_Germany) used high level bombers such as the [Heinkel He 111](/source/Heinkel_He_111), the [Dornier Do 17](/source/Dornier_Do_17) and multi-role aircraft such as the [Junkers Ju 88](/source/Junkers_Ju_88) against the Allies in the [Battle of Britain](/source/Battle_of_Britain),[3] both for carpet bombing and for precision attacks on British [radar](/source/Radar) stations as part of [Operation Eagle](/source/Operation_Sea_Lion#Operation_Eagle).[4] ## Cold War Further information: [Strategic bomber#The Cold War and its aftermath](/source/Strategic_bomber#The_Cold_War_and_its_aftermath) and [Nuclear triad](/source/Nuclear_triad) During the [Cold War](/source/Cold_War), the [United States](/source/United_States) and [Soviet Union](/source/Soviet_Union) used several bomber designs,[5] but the bulk of their offensive forces were in the form of, respectively, the [B-52 Stratofortress](/source/Boeing_B-52_Stratofortress) and [Tu-95 Bear](/source/Tupolev_Tu-95). The [French](/source/France) equivalent was the [Mirage IV](/source/Dassault_Mirage_IV), and the [UK](/source/United_Kingdom) had its [V bombers](/source/V_bomber). The U.S. [Strategic Air Command](/source/Strategic_Air_Command) (SAC) ordered massive high level bombing in [Operation Rolling Thunder](/source/Operation_Rolling_Thunder) and [Operation Menu](/source/Operation_Menu)[6] during the [Vietnam War](/source/Vietnam_War).[7] ## See also - [Attack aircraft](/source/Attack_aircraft) - [Fighter-bomber](/source/Fighter-bomber) - [Heavy bomber](/source/Heavy_bomber) - [Light bomber](/source/Light_bomber) - [Medium bomber](/source/Medium_bomber) - [Schnellbomber](/source/Schnellbomber) - [Strategic bombing](/source/Strategic_bombing) ## References 1. "The Bomber War" by Robin Neillands, ISBN 0-7195-5637-6, p.35 1. "The Bomber War" by Robin Neillands, ISBN 0-7195-5637-6, p.23 1. "The Bomber War" by Robin Neillands, ISBN 0-7195-5637-6, Chapter 2 1. "History of the Second World War, ed. Sir Basil Liddell Hart, ISBN 0-907305-36-9, p.74 1. White, W.L. (2007). [*Report on the Russians*](https://books.google.com/books?id=xNf0FIxInJgC). Read Books. p. 39. ISBN 9781406749304. Retrieved 2015-03-02. 1. ["The Walrus » Bombing Cambodia » Bombs over Cambodia » History"](https://web.archive.org/web/20100114175715/http://walrusmagazine.com/articles/2006.10-history-bombing-cambodia/). Archived from [the original](http://www.walrusmagazine.com/articles/2006.10-history-bombing-cambodia/) on 2010-01-14. Retrieved 2010-05-09. 1. ["Bombing of Cambodia - Ohio History Central"](https://ohiohistorycentral.org/w/Bombing_of_Cambodia?rec=1611). *ohiohistorycentral.org* --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [High level bombing](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_level_bombing) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_level_bombing?action=history)). 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