Although the city of Numazu was not a major population center, it had a number of targets of military significance centered around its port facility, including a ship repair yard, and a number of small and medium sized factories suppling military equipment and munitions. The Tōkaidō Main Line railway connecting Tokyo with Osaka also ran through the city. Numazu was also located at the base of Mount Fuji, a prominent landmark used by bombers en route to Tokyo or Nagoya from the Mariana Islands, and thus often served as a secondary target for bombers unable to complete their primary mission assignment.