What was the overall Allied plan for invading Japan, including Operation Olympic?

Operation Downfall was the overall Allied plan for invading Japan, including Operation Olympic.

The plan had two major stages. Operation Olympic called for an invasion of southern Kyushu, scheduled for November 1945. Operation Coronet was planned for the spring of 1946 and would have targeted the Tokyo Plain on Honshu. Together, these operations made up Operation Downfall.

The invasion was never carried out because Japan accepted the Allied terms in August 1945 and signed the formal surrender in September. Allied planners expected fierce resistance, drawing on the battles of Iwo Jima and Okinawa and Japan’s preparations for a homeland defense.

Operation Downfall is therefore a planned operation, not a battle that occurred. Olympic and Coronet are sometimes incorrectly used as names for the entire invasion. Olympic referred only to the Kyushu phase, while Downfall covered the complete proposed campaign.