
Pearl Harbor
The HMS Illustrious & Other Armored British Carriers Left Their Mark
by Sam McGowanWhen one thinks of carrier warfare in World War II, the Japanese and U.S. navies usually come to mind. Read more
The attack on Pearl Harbor and other U.S. military installations on the island of Oahu, territory of Hawaii, Sunday, December 7, 1941, plunged the United States into World War II. The Pearl Harbor anchorage of the U.S. Navy’s Pacific Fleet was attacked by two waves of Japanese planes flying from aircraft carriers more than 200 miles north of Hawaii. Eight battleships of the Pacific Fleet, as well as numerous other ships, were sunk or damaged, and 2,403 American lives were lost. Pearl Harbor has become an enduring symbol of American resolve in the wake of the surprise air raid. President Franklin Roosevelt called the date of the Pearl Harbor attack one that would “live in infamy.”
Pearl Harbor
When one thinks of carrier warfare in World War II, the Japanese and U.S. navies usually come to mind. Read more
Pearl Harbor
Still stunned by the sneak Japanese onslaught on the Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor, American families tried to summon up their Christmas spirit in December 1941. Read more
Pearl Harbor
Although the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor was the event that served to galvanize America to fight World War II, President Franklin Roosevelt and his military advisers had pervasively decided that defeating the Japanese would be secondary to destroying the Nazi war machine in Europe. Read more
Pearl Harbor
On September 14, 1938, fleet submarine USS Squalus (SS-192) was launched at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine. Read more
Pearl Harbor
The Pearl Harbor aftermath presented the U.S. Navy with a sobering question: how to recover? More than 2,000 men had died. Read more
Pearl Harbor
During the Pearl Harbor attack, both Utah and Oklahoma capsized after suffering multiple torpedo hits. Utah had been converted to a training ship, and to the Japanese pilots, her modified deck resembled that of an aircraft carrier. Read more
Pearl Harbor
Due largely to their use in the postwar U.S. Army Air Forces and present proliferation among the air show community, the North American P-51 Mustang is thought of by many as the most important American fighter of World War II. Read more
Pearl Harbor
World War II was responsible for numerous technological advances, not the least of which was the establishment of the largest airline in history. Read more
Pearl Harbor
The psychological and military shock that the Allies experienced when they first encountered Mitsubishi’s legendary A6M2 Zero fighter plane at the beginning of the Pacific War may be difficult to understand today. Read more
Pearl Harbor
On March 3, 1945, the 27,100-ton aircraft carrier USS Franklin churned out of Pearl Harbor and headed westward for the war zone. Read more
Pearl Harbor
Less than a year after the sudden and devastating Japanese attack against the United States at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, the American military was about to embark on a large-scale offensive operation against German and Italian forces in North Africa. Read more
Pearl Harbor
During the summer of 1940, Winston Churchill was fighting a two-front war. The first was against Adolf Hitler and his war machine, particularly his Luftwaffe. Read more
Pearl Harbor
The Allied decision to invade North Africa, codenamed Operation Torch, was reached in the summer of 1942 after lengthy—and sometimes bitter—arguments between interested parties. Read more
Pearl Harbor
The Japanese torpedo bombers came in dangerously low to launch their torpedoes at the battleships on the east side of Ford Island at 8 AM on the morning of December 7, 1941. Read more
Pearl Harbor
The USS Phoenix fought under two flags during her 44-year career. She gained initial prominence as a United States ship during World War II and concluded her career as an Argentinian combat casualty in the Falklands War of 1982. Read more
Pearl Harbor
Until the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, America had maintained a popular non-interventionist position with World War 2. Read more
Pearl Harbor
The American forces serving in World War II were composed primarily of citizen soldiers—people who had no notion of going to war until Pearl Harbor was attacked. Read more
Pearl Harbor
One morning in early January 1882, Japan took its first unknowing step toward eventual world war. On that day Mutsuhito, the emperor of Japan, handed a document known as the Imperial Rescript to Soldiers and Sailors to Army Minister, Oyama Iwao. Read more
Pearl Harbor
During the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 the primary target was Battleship Row. These capital ships had to suffice since the American carriers were away. Read more
Pearl Harbor
Many vestiges of World War II in the Pacific linger, denying the ravages of time.
The battleship USS Missouri, where the war ended nearly 70 years ago, remains as a floating monument and museum at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. Read more