One day last week a U.S. B-29 took off from a base near Tokyo for what the Air Force called a "routine" practice flight over Hokkaido, northernmost of the Japanese islands. Aboard the big bomber were eight men—a full crew minus gunners. Over eastern Hokkaido, as it neared the sea at 15,000 ft., the B-29 was being tracked by Air Force radar.
In addition to the bomber's "blip" on the screen, the radar monitors saw another blip coming from the direction of the Soviet-held Kurils, which are separated from Hokkaido by only six miles of water. The two blips came closer...
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