THE WAR IN THE PACIFIC AND EAST ASIA: JAPAN ON THE OFFENSIVE: 1941-42 When the nations of Western Europe became embroiled in World War II, Japan began to expand into the Southeast Asian colonies of the European powers. After the United States retaliated with economic sanctions, Japan planned a concerted attack on the American naval base at Pearl Harbour, Hawaii, and other Pacific and Asian targets. For a time Japan was master of the central and western Pacific and East Asia. Japanese Expansion and U.S. Response: 1940-41 Japan's invasion of Manchuria in 1931 and its subsequent full- scale assault against China in 1937 brought expressions of disapproval from the …show more content…
Surprise Attack on Pearl Harbour In late 1941 more than 75 U.S. warships--including battleships, cruisers, destroyers, submarines, and auxiliaries--were based at this "Gibraltar of the Pacific." All U.S. aircraft carriers were elsewhere. On November 26 a Japanese task force, consisting of 6 carriers, 2 battleships, 3 cruisers, and several destroyers and tankers under command of Vice Adm. Chuichi Nagumo, departed in secret from the Kuril Islands. Observing radio silence, it reached a launching point at 6 AM, December 7. At 7:50 AM, the first wave of Japanese planes struck Pearl Harbour, bombarding airfields and battleships moored at the concrete quays. A second wave followed. The surprise attack was over before 10 AM. The results were devastating; 18 U.S. ships were hit, and more than 200 aircraft destroyed or damaged. The battleship Arizona was a total wreck; the West Virginia and California were sunk; and the Nevada was heavily damaged. Approximately 2,400 Americans were killed, 1,300 wounded, and 1,000 missing. Japanese losses were fewer than 100 casualties, 29 planes, and 5 midget submarines. The Japanese scored a brilliant tactical victory, apparently crippling U.S. naval power in the Pacific. The attack was, however, a colossal political and psychological blunder, for it mobilised U.S. public opinion against the Japanese and served as the catalyst that brought the United States into the war. "December 7, 1941," said President Franklin D.
On the morning of December 7, 1941 approximately 100 U.S. Navy battleships, destroyers, cruisers, and support ships, were present at Pearl Harbor. All these assumptions were wrong. As the bombs rained on Pearl Harbor on the on infamous morning of Sunday, December 7, 1941, almost 3,000 Americans were killed. Six battleships were destroyed or rendered unseaworthy, and most of the ground planes were ravaged as well. Americans reacted with surprise and
Four US fighters took off but were promptly shot down. By 8:00 there were no more enemy planes in the air, and the Japaneses fighters strafed the airfields. When it was time for the level-bombing group to attack the battleships moored to the cast of Ford Island, the US antiaircraft began to fire at Japan causing dark clouds to form (most of them came from ships’ batteries). A cloud came between the bombsight and the target and caused the lead plane to miss the shot. Source L states that there was a dark red smoke that rose to 1000 meters that showed to explosion of the Battelship Arizona, over 1000 men got trapped inside as the ship sank. Commander Fuchida observed the damage and the second wave attack to see the ‘success.’ By the time the attack was over Pearl Harbour and its air bases were wrecked badly by the fierce strafing and
The Americans were not the only ones to lose people and equipment. The Japanese lost about 30 planes, five submarines, and less than 100 men (history.com). Though almost all of our fleet was destroyed, we had three fleet carriers out at sea. The carriers were not hit by anything
There was three ships on the west side of Ford island and four on the east side as well. The Japanese initially hit was the airfields and destroying many aircrafts on the tip of Ford island. As the torpedo planes continued the attack and additional bombs were dropped on “Battleship Row” hitting several ships. As the first wave lifted, a Japanese telegraph operator taped out Tora,Tora,Tora: the code word for surprise attack achieved. The battleship Pennsylvania and three destroyers were bombed in dry dock. The Anti-aircraft gunfire met these ships, causing losses which far greater than the first attack wave. The two waves affected a lot of people (Pearl Harbor tours)
Furthermore, on December 7, 1941 this horrid event left the United States in shock. The Japanese set up their base camp 230 miles north of Pearl Harbor with 350 planes and six battleships (Akagi, Kaga, Soryu, Hiryu, Shokaku, and Zuikaku). The Japanese lost 29 out of the 350 planes
On December 7th, 1941, the 22,000-acre American naval base at Pearl Harbour on the island Oahu in Hawaii, was attacked by more than 350 aircraft of the Imperial Japanese Navy.
Shortly before 7:55 a.m., Japanese fighter planes flew in closer and closer to Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. As they reached the naval base, the Japanese began their attack. They launched thousands of rounds to the ground below destroying everything in its path. Thousands of people were lost and millions of dollars of equipment was destroyed. Bombs fell from the sky, sinking the U.S.S Arizona and the men trapped inside of it. Torpedoes caused damage to other ships including U.S.S Oklahoma, U.S.S Utah, U.S.S West Virginia, and more. On land, there were close to three hundred planes destroyed. Out of all of these loses, the 3,500 men who died or were injured struck America the hardest.
The first planes arrived at 7:53 a.m. There were in total, 40 torpedo bombers, 50 dive bombers, 50 high level bombers and 43 zero fighters. This wave was targeting the airfields and battleships. The second wave arrived shortly after and targeted other ships and shipyard facilities. The U.S. was especially vulnerable to this attack because there was no suspicion of any attacks whatsoever. Torpedo nets are not in place in the harbor, weapons and ammunition are locked away from each other to comply with peacetime rules, and aircraft are parked wingtip to wingtip on airstrips.The aircraft therefore took much longer to take off and were easily destroyed in mass quantities because they were so close together. After the attack is over Japan has damaged 8 battleships and sunk 5. Three light cruisers, three
The invasion of Manchuria was a pivotal point leading towards the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki as well as the build- up of the tension between America and Japan. The minor engagement between the Chinese and Japanese troops conclusively led to undeclared war between the two nations. With China torn apart by revolution in the 1920s, Japan 's militarists viewed China, and in particular, its resource-rich northern
The Japanese honed and arranged precisely for their assault on Pearl Harbor. They knew their arrangement was to a great degree dangerous. The likelihood of achievement depended intensely on complete astonishment. On November 26, 1941, the Japanese assault power, driven by Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo, left Etorofu Island in the Kurils (spotted upper east of Japan) and started its 3,000-mile travel over the Pacific Ocean.
The submarine sinking was handled with no reaction, and the radar sighting was passed off as a group of American planes approaching that morning. The United States’ did not have any aircraft carriers at Pearl Harbor on December 7th. They were all out at training. The attacking Japanese planes came in two waves with high level bombers, dive bombers, and zeros(japanese fighter planes) strapped with torpedoes. By 9:55 am the attack was all over only two hours after it had begun. Behind them they left a crippled Pacific Fleet that included 8 damaged or destroyed battleships, 2,403 dead, and 188 destroyed planes.
On December 7, 1941 the Japanese propelled a surprise destroy assault on the U.S. Naval Base Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. At a young hour in the morning on December 7, there was near to 360 Japanese planes assaulted around 33 American ships which were requests of Vice-Admiral Chuichi Nagumo. America maintained a loss of 170 flying machines that morning and additionally 18 boats. Three thousand seven hundred Americans lost their lives in one day yet.
The United States relationship with Japan was already tense; Japan’s attitude towards China was extremely hostile and aggressive. The United States and China had been allies, so they helped each other out. In 1937, Japan declared war China. In response, the United States cut of Japan’s oil supply and other goods. Without
The attack commenced at 7:48 a.m. Hawaiian Time . The base was attacked by 353 Imperial Japanese aircraft in two waves, launched from six aircraft carriers. Important base installations such as the power
But Japan wanted to be known as the Greater East Asia Co-prosperity Sphere but to do this they needed to invade china. But it was Japan, and not Germany that brought the USA into the Second World War. In the 1930's Japan had gained control of parts of Northern China (Manchuria) and in 1940 Japan took over French Indo-China and now Japan had the largest fleet in the Pacific than the British and Americans together.