Right: The caption reads "Captured Japanese photograph showing the first moments of the attack. A torpedo has just hit USS West Virginia on the far side of Ford Island (center), and a Japanese plane is visible to the right of the plume. USS Oklahoma just to the right of West Virginia is already listing from torpedo hits. On the near side of Ford Isalnd, to the left, are light cruisers Detroit and Raleigh, target and training ship Utah and seaplane tender Tangier. Raleigh and Utah have been torpedoed, and Utah is listing sharply to port." Source: War History Network license through the National WWII Museum. Click to enlarge.

On 26 November 1941, a Japanese task force of six aircraft carriers--Akagi (carrying 64 planes), Kaga (carrying 71 planes), Soryu (carrying 53 planes), Hiryu (carrying 51 planes), Shokaku (carrying 58 planes), and Zuikaku (carrying 58 planes), each equipped at maximum capacity, departed from Hittokapu Bay, Japan. (Prange 1981, 375) Their destination was a position northwest of Hawaii where they had planned to launch more than 400 aircraft to mount an attack on Pearl Harbor. The attack was divided into two waves, with the first being the primary attack and the second intended to destroy carriers as its initial objective, cruisers as its second, and finally battleships as their third target. The first wave was loaded with highly effective Type 91 aerial torpedoes which were uniquely designed with an anti-roll mechanism and a rudder extension that allowed them to operate in shallow water.

Before the attack, tensions between the United States and Japan had been increasing steadily. Japan’s rapid militaristic expansion in Asia and America’s support for China, coupled with U.S. and European economic sanctions against Japan, had led to an increasingly hostile relationship between the two countries. The Japanese government, desperate to find a solution to its economic woes, decided to take a gamble and launch a surprise attack against America's naval base in Pearl Harbor. In the 1930s, Japan was undergoing a period of rapid modernization and expansionism. The country's leaders believed that Japan, as a nation, was destined to become one of the dominant powers in the world, and this belief led to their aggressive territorial ambitions. Japan had been waging an undeclared war in China since 1937, and as their empire expanded, oil and other resources became scarce. The United States, a leading supplier of oil, had initiated an embargo on the sale of crude oil to Japan in July 1941. This embargo and other economic sanctions imposed by the US and Britain were viewed by Japanese leaders as a threat to their nation's survival.

ATTACK

The attack on Pearl Harbor was a meticulously planned and executed operation by the Japanese. Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, the architect of the attack, knew that the Pacific Fleet was essential to American operations in the Pacific. His plan was to cripple the US Pacific Fleet in a surprise attack, providing Japan with the time it needed to carry out its military expansion in Asia without fear of US intervention. On the morning of 7 December 1941, a fleet of six aircraft carriers, led by Admiral Chuichi Nagumo, launched a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor. The strike force of aircraft, including torpedo bombers, dive bombers, and fighters. The initial targets were US airfields and aircraft stationed on the island of Oahu, followed by an assault on the US Pacific Fleet, which was moored in Pearl Harbor. The American forces were completely caught off guard, with many soldiers still asleep or having breakfast at the time of the attack.

The air crews were trained such that they would select high-value targets such as carriers and battleships, or alternatively, any other high-value ships such as cruisers and destroyers should the first armament not be available. The first wave constituted dive bombers that attacked ground targets while the fighters were ordered to assist and prevent any interception by the enemy's aircraft. The fighters were to ensure that parked aircraft were destroyed using their machine guns to achieve this objective and would refuel when their fuel reached a minimum level or they were out of ammo. In doing so, they were best placed to return to combat when the need arose.

The Japanese planes targeted the American battleships, cruisers, and aircraft on the ground. The first wave of the attack caused significant damage, and the second wave, which followed an hour later, was even more devastating. By the time the attack was over, 8 American battleships had been damaged, with 4 of them being completely destroyed. Historian and author Evan Mawdsley writes of the horrors aboard the Arizona after its ebtire magazine and forward oil storage had exploded: "An observer closer to the site of the explosion, Lt. Commander Harley F. Smart later recounted the horror of what happened. Smart 'could see men on the Arizona walking on deck and buring alive. They had their helmets on, their clothes were all seared off. Actually they were only reconizable because of their helmets. They were a ghostly crew as they walked out of those flames. And then they just dropped dead.'" (Mawdsley 2019, 172)

Photo albums: Pearl Harbor: National WWII Museum collection | USMC Archives Pearl Harbor collection

AFTERMATH

The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor was a disaster for the United States, both in terms of lives lost and damage inflicted. The shock of the attack galvanized the American public, Congress, and President Franklin D. Roosevelt to declare war on Japan the next day. This decision marked the beginning of America's participation in World War II. The attack on Pearl Harbor also had significant military consequences. The destruction of the American battleships crippled the Pacific Fleet's ability to engage in major offensive operations against Japan. However, the attack did not target the important logistical infrastructure, such as the repair facilities and fuel depots, which allowed America to rebuild its strength relatively quickly. The attack also had profound effects on Hawaii and its residents. The devastating blow shook the island's sense of security and left many feeling vulnerable and scared. Anti-Japanese sentiment in the United States reached an all-time high and led to the internment of over 120,000 Japanese Americans, many of whom had nothing to do with the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Right: The caption reads "The destroyer Shaw's forward magazine expodes after being hit by bombs while in the floating drydock YFD-2. Photographed from Ford Island, the USS Avocet is partially visible at left." Source: War History Network license through the National WWII Museum. Click to enlarge.

Battleship Arizona, Rear Admiral Isaac C. Kidd's flagship of Battleship Division One, was hit by four armor-piercing bombs and exploded. The ship, which was moored in Battleship Row, was a total loss and not salvaged. Tragically, 1,177 crew members lost their lives - the highest death toll on a single US warship. The Arizona Memorial, sitting atop the sunken wreckage of the ship, serves as a testament to this immense loss.

Oklahoma, another battleship moored in Battleship Row, was hit by five torpedoes and capsized. Although salvaged, the ship sank en route to scrapping in May 1947, with 429 crew members losing their lives. West Virginia was hit by two bombs and seven torpedoes and sunk. It returned to service in July 1944, with 106 crew members losing their lives in the attack. California was hit by two bombs and two torpedoes before sinking and was restored to service by January 1944. 104 sailors perished. Battleship Nevada was hit by six bombs and one torpedo before running aground. It returned to service in October 1942, but 60 sailors lost their lives.

Pennsylvania, Admiral Husband E. Kimmel's flagship of the United States Pacific Fleet, was in dry dock with Cassin and Downes and sustained damaged from one bomb and debris from USS Cassin; however, the battleship remained in service, with nine crew members losing their lives. Battleship Tennessee was hit by two bombs and returned to service in February 1942, with five sailors losing their lives. Similarly, Maryland was hit by two bombs before returning to service, but only four sailors were lost, including a floatplane pilot shot down.

Ex-battleship Utah was hit by two torpedoes, capsizing with 64 crew members losing their lives. It was a total loss, and salvage efforts halted.

The attack also targeted several cruisers, including Helena, which was hit by one torpedo but managed to return to service by January 1942. Raleigh was hit by one torpedo and returned to service by February 1942, and Honolulu sustained minimal damage but nevertheless remained in service.

The destroyers at Pearl Harbor also suffered significant damage, with Cassin, Drydock Number One, and Pennsylvania catching fire and burning. Cassin was reconstructed and returned to service by February 1944, with Downes also reconstructed and returning to service by November 1943. USS Shaw was hit by three bombs but survived and returned to service by June 1942. Helm was damaged by two near-miss bombs but continued its patrol, undergoing repair work later that month.

Even the auxiliary ships were not spared. Oglala, a minelayer, was damaged by a torpedo hit on Helena, capsizing but eventually returning to service as an engine-repair ship in February 1944. Vestal, a repair ship, was hit by two bombs and blast and fire from Arizona. It was ultimately beached but returned to service by August 1942. Seaplane tender Curtiss sustained damage from one bomb and one crashed Japanese aircraft but returned to service by January 1942, with 19 sailors losing their lives. Sotoyomo, a harbor tug, sustained damage from fires and explosions in Shaw and, unfortunately, sunk - however, the ship managed to return to service by August 1942. YFD-2, a yard floating dock, was damaged by bombs but managed to return to service on January 25, 1942, servicing Shaw.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Mawdsley, Evan. The War for the Seas: A Maritime History of World War II. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2019.

Prange, Gordon W., Donald M. Goldstein, and Katherine V. Dillon. At Dawn We Slept: The Untold Story of Pearl Harbor. New York: Penguin Books, 1981.

Symonds, Craig L. World War II at Sea: A Global History. New York: Oxford University Press, 2018.