In the early morning hours of December 7th, 1941, a fleet of Japanese aircraft carriers and supporting vessels steamed toward Hawaii and launched a sneak attack on the US Naval Station at Pearl Harbor on the island of Oahu, home to the US Navy's Pacific Fleet.
Japanese Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, initially opposed to military action against America, had planned the attack with the intent of preemptively crippling the United State's ability to counter Japanese invasions in British Malaya and The Duch East Indies. Both resource-rich territories were critical to the Japanese war effort, and they feared that the United States would enter the war when the allied territories were invaded. The Japanese feared a military conflict with America, and the attack on Pearl Harbor was a desperately bold attempt to avoid that conflict.
Before the Pearl Harbor attack, America had largely stayed out of the war. After the loss of over 100 thousand American lives in World War I, there was no appetite to send American soldiers to die in another European war. The Neutrality Act made it challenging for America even to support allied war efforts. That would all change on December 7th, 1941. The devastating attack, designed to keep America out of the war, had the opposite effect. The date did indeed live in infamy, and the attack on Pearl Harbor became a pivotal moment in American and world history.
Today, we remember the attack on Pearl Harbor and those lost on that tragic day.
The timeline of events that would change the world.
3:42 am: The USS Condor reports sighting a submarine periscope near the entrance to Pearl Harbor.
6:10 am: Nearly 200 planes take off from Japanese aircraft carriers 275 miles north of Oahu.
6:45 am: The destroyer USS Ward fires on and sinks an unidentified submarine near the entrance to Pearl harbor. Firing the first shots by the United States in WWII.
6:53 am: The captain of the Ward radios headquarters reports the submarine's sinking. Command considered the encounter an isolated incident, and no further action was taken.
7:02 am: A radar operator sights a large formation of unidentified aircraft approaching Oahu and reports the sighting to his superiors.
7:20 am: An army lieutenant mistakenly believes the aircraft the radar operator reported are US B-17 bombers scheduled to arrive at Pearl Harbor that day and disregards the report. Again, no further is taken.
7:55 am: The attack on Pearl Harbor begins.
8:10 am: The USS Arizona explodes.
8:17 am: The destroyer USS Helm sinks another submarine at the entrance to Pearl Harbor.
8:54 am: A second wave of attacks begins. 170 Japanese planes descended on Pearl Harbor.
9:30 am: The USS Shaw explodes in dry dock.
10:00 am: The attack is over. 2,404 Americans lay dead, 1,177 on the USS Arizona alone.
The USS Arizona, Oklahoma, and Utah were lost in the battle.
Ships, including the USS Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Maryland, California, and West Virginia, were repaired and returned to service.
The USS West Virginia was the only ship attacked at Pearl Harbor, present at the formal surrender of Japan on September 2nd, 1945.
America would officially declare war the next day.
15 naval personnel were awarded the Medal of Honor for their actions during the attack, and 51 others were awarded the Navy Cross.
A generation of young Americans would be called upon to save the world. The Greatest Generation answered that call.
President Dwight D. Eisenhower authorized the creation of the USS Arizona Memorial in 1958. Designed by architect Alfred Preis, It was officially dedicated in 1962.
The flag above the memorial is flown at half-staff on December 7th each year to honor those lost during the attack.
The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor drew America into WWII. They did wake a sleeping giant. Japan and the Axis Powers would be defeated, and America would emerge as a Superpower on the world stage.
2,404 people lost their lives in the attack on Pearl Harbor. Today, we remember their sacrifice and honor their memory.
Lest We Forget.