Pearl Harbor

The infamous Japanese attack on the USA Naval base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii was probably one of the most significant events of World War Two. Brilliantly planned and executed though it was, the assault was as much a surprise to Hitler and Mussolini as the Americans and they quite needlessly declared was on the USA; At a stroke the might of the US war machine was focused on the Axis powers.

It was on 7th December 1941 that 350 carrier-borne Japanese aircraft made their lighting attack. It was all over quickly and as the Japanese aircraft returned to base, the American survivors of the ferocious assault looked over the harbor to see that not one battleship had been left undamaged; 200 aircraft had been destroyed and 2400 people killed.