The "Hump" refers to the mountainous area at the eastern edge of the Himalayas, north of Myanmar. This was a notorious flight route during the Second World War used by the Allies to fly supplies into the West of China. It was vital in the war effort but is one of the most dangerous routes ever flown.

While the first supply mission over "The Hump" occurred in April 1942, regular Hump operations began in May 1942 with twenty-seven aircraft (converted US airline DC-3s, C-39s and C-53s) and approximately 1,100 personnel from New Malir Air Base, a British base located in the Sind Desert about twenty miles east of Karachi in western India.

The air routes went over the eastern part of the Himalayan Mountains. This operation was the first sustained, long range, twenty-four hours around-the-clock, all weather military aerial supply line in history. It was a start-from-scratch operation. There was no precedent for it. Even with the opening of an alternate ground route in early 1945, The Hump remained the principal supply route until after the war ended.

During 1944, the Hump flights grew exponentially in terms of tonnage, organization, and operational sophistication. They became quite simply the world’s biggest international airline. By the end of the war the ATC Division increased from 369 to 722 aircraft and personnel numbers from 26,000 to more than 84,000, including 4,400 pilots. Early in 1945, the monthly cargo delivered to China reached 44,000 tons, peaking at 71,000 tons in July. Between August 1944 and October 1945, The Hump delivered almost 500,000 tons of material from India to China.

The cost in aircraft and crews was enormous. Loss estimates vary between 468 and 600 plus airplanes (the AAF did not record every crash), but the more probable estimate is 590 aircraft lost along with 1,314 crewmen. Some 1,171 men who after surviving crash landings and bailouts walked out to safety; 345 men were declared missing

Operations ended, after three and one-half years, on November 15, 1945, the day The Hump was officially closed.

We have prepared a recommended LittleNavMap flight plan if you wanted to fly the route more realistically, which you can download from here if you wish.