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carry an atom bomb Are there indications that such studies and
operations were contemplated by the Nazis
A. The Oberkommando der Luftwaffe's Unusual Map
In 1943 the Supreme Command of the Luftwaffe
(Oberkommando der Luftwaffe) conducted a highly unusual study.
The study consisted of a map, a map of lower Manhattan Island. On
the map are concentric circles detailing the blast and heat damageradii
of an atomic bomb detonation over New York City. But the
most unusual aspect of this "study" is that it shows the detonation
of an atom bomb in the 15-17 kiloton range, approximately the
same yield as the Little Boy uranium bomb dropped on Hiroshima,
an odd "coincidence" in the series of "odd coincidences" we havealready
encountered.
The Luftwaffe's intentions are quite obvious and clear. The
destruction of the financial and business center of New York City
would alone have been an unparalleled military and psychological
blow against the American war effort. Beyond this, given the fact
that New York City was an important point of embarkation for
American shipping and troops, as well as a naval base, and a
transportation hub for the entire American northeast, such a blow
would have been incalculable.
For the Nazi leadership, such a blow would have made military
and political sense. It would have demonstrated conclusively to the
United States that Germany was capable of mounting significant
military operations against the American mainland, and at levels of
destructive capability that were militarily, economically, and
psychologically devastating. From their point of view, such a blow
would arguably been seen as weakening American resolve and
perhaps, after a succession of similar such blows against prominent
targets such as Boston, Philadelphia, Washington DC or Norfolk,
would conceivably have led to America's exit from the war, leaving
Britain to follow not far behind. The war against the Soviet Union
could then either have been prosecuted without mercy until the
inevitable Soviet capitulation, or at the minimum, a negotiated
peace highly favorable to the Reich.
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