A World War II-Era Bomb Exploded At An Airport In Southwestern Japan
Throughout Japan, artifacts and weapons from World War II have been found over the years. But one was recently discovered at an airport after it exploded.
According to Japanese officials, an American bomb from World War II had been buried at Miyazaki Airport in southwestern Japan.
When it exploded on October 2, it created a large crater in a taxiway and led to the cancelation of more than 80 flights. Fortunately, no one was hurt, and no aircraft were nearby when the bomb went off.
The affected flights were operated by JAL (9201.T), ANA (9202.T), and other airlines that connected Miyazaki with major cities such as Tokyo, Osaka, and Fukuoka.
The police and the Self-Defense forces conducted an investigation. They confirmed the explosion was caused by a 500-pound American bomb.
There was no threat of any further explosions. Experts are trying to figure out what caused the sudden detonation.
An aviation school located nearby managed to capture video footage of the blast. Pieces of asphalt flew into the air, and a crater about 23 feet in diameter and three feet deep was left behind in the taxiway.
A Japan Airlines plane carrying 93 passengers had been taxiing just two minutes before the incident occurred.
The airport said that the damage to the taxiway was repaired overnight, and flights resumed the following morning.
f11photo – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only
Miyazaki Airport was built in 1943 and was initially used as a flight training field by the Imperial Japanese Navy.
Two years later, in 1945, it became a kamikaze base. A total of 47 aircraft reportedly took off on attack missions, including during the Battle of Okinawa.
Currently, it is believed that the bomb was dropped by the U.S. military during an air raid at some point during World War II.
Defense Ministry officials said that a number of unexploded American bombs have previously been unearthed in the area.
Around Japan, hundreds of tons of unexploded bombs from the war are still buried beneath the land surface. Sometimes, they are dug up at construction sites. In 2023, a total of 2,348 bombs weighing 37.5 tons were disposed of, per the Self-Defense Forces.
Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism is conducting emergency searches for more unexploded World War II bombs at airports in Miyazaki, Sendai, Fukuoka, and Naha. The airports in these areas were all built where the Imperial Japanese military had their air bases.
Another suspected wartime bomb from the U.S. was found at Naha Airport in Okinawa Prefecture. The Self-Defense Forces safely detonated it.
More than 79 years since the end of the war, these explosives serve as a dangerous reminder of the most destructive and deadly conflict in human history.
During the Second World War, about 60 million people across several continents were killed due to combat and bombing that laid waste to cities and towns.
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