Chihaya collection via Mike Wenger 0610After nearly a year of planning, months of training, and a week of sailing through the rough seas of the Northern Pacific, the Kido Butai had arrived, undetected, just 200 miles away from Oahu. For hours, sailors, mechanics, and aviators had been busy loading ordnance, spotting planes on the flight deck, and warming their engines. And now, at 0610, twenty minutes before dawn, the first A6M “Zero” fighter lifted off from the carrier Akagi – followed swiftly by over 180 aircraft from all six carriers.Some officers, like Commander Minoru Genda, the primary planner of the attack, looked on with confidence. Others, like Vice Admiral Chūichi Nagumo, felt deep trepidation. In less than two hours, the attack would begin. 
Official U.S. Navy Photograph, from the collections of the Naval History and Heritage Command. 0637The USS Ward spotted a periscope following the repair ship, USS Antares, as it steered toward Pearl Harbor. 
US Army 0702Privates Joseph Lockard and George Elliott were finishing the end of an overnight training shift at the Opana Radar Station on the North Shore. A massive formation of aircraft was approaching from the north, roughly 130 miles out. The radar signature was larger than anything they had ever seen. Private Elliott reported their findings to the operator on duty at the temporary information center, Lieutenant Kermit Tyler, a new and untrained officer. Tyler assumed the radar blips must be the twelve B-17s airplanes expected to arrive from the mainland that morning. Because radar was considered experimental and the center wasn't fully staffed until after 0800, no further action was taken. What the operators actually saw was over 180 aircraft from the Kido Butai, on course to begin their attack in less than one hour. On December 7, 1941, radar was one of the newest tools in the United States military's arsenal. In fact, the Army had only six operational mobile radar units on Oʻahu, all part of the SCR-270 early-warning system — a truck-mounted radar capable of detecting aircraft nearly 100 miles away. That morning, the Opana Radar Site on the North Shore was staffed only by two young operators, Pvt. Joseph Lockard and Pvt. George Elliott, who were finishing the end of an overnight training shift. At 7:02 am, they noticed an unusually large return on their oscilloscope: a massive formation of aircraft approaching from the north, roughly 130 miles out. The radar signature was larger than anything they had ever seen. Elliott urged reporting it, and the operator on duty at the temporary information center, Lt. Kermit Tyler — an officer whose role was brand-new — assumed the radar blips must be the twelve B-17s expected to arrive from the mainland that morning. Because radar was considered experimental and the center wasn’t fully staffed until after 8 am, no further action was taken. What the operators actually saw was the first wave of Japanese aircraft — more than 180 planes. Their detection came more than 50 minutes before the attack on Pearl Harbor began, making it one of the earliest warnings of the day. Though the information didn’t change the outcome, the event became a case study in the importance of training, coordination, and interpreting new technology during wartime. Today, radar has evolved far beyond those early SCR-270 units. Modern military radars can detect, track, and classify aircraft, missiles, drones, and ships with precision unimaginable in 1941. They operate on multiple frequencies, resist jamming, and share real-time data across aircraft, satellites, ships, and command networks. Some systems, like phased-array radars (PAR), can track hundreds of targets simultaneously and guide defensive weapons within seconds. The story of radar on December 7th isn’t just a historical footnote — it’s a reminder of how rapidly technology advances, and how critical it is for information to flow quickly and clearly. From a lonely truck-mounted radar on Oʻahu’s North Shore to today’s global surveillance systems, radar has become one of the most essential tools for military readiness and national defense. 0740As the sun rose, 183 aircraft flew over the North Shore of Oahu. 51 Aichi D3A dive bombers, armed with 550-pound bombs to wreak havoc against the American airfields. 43 Mitsubishi A6M “Zero” fighters, to shoot up any American planes they found in the sky or on the ground. And 89 Nakajima B5N bombers – 40 armed with torpedoes, 49 with heavy armor-piercing bombs, all targeted against any battleships or carriers unlucky enough to be in Pearl Harbor that morning.Aboard one of the B5N bombers to oversee the attack was Commander Mitsuo Fuchida. Recognizing the Americans had been taken by surprise, he fired a single flare to order a simultaneous attack from the dive bombers and torpedo bombers. However, when a group of fighters missed the signal, Fuchida fired a second flare – and to his consternation, the leader of the dive bombers took it as a signal that they had *not* achieved surprise, and he was to attack first, five minutes before the torpedo planes. It was an unmistakable error – but one that would make little difference. As the formation broke apart to attack their assigned targets, Fuchida was able to look over Pearl Harbor and see the entire US Pacific fleet lying peacefully at anchor, completely unaware of the coming danger. 
Wikipedia 0749At 0749, he told his radio operator to send out the attack signal – “To, To, To.” And then, a few minutes later, he radioed to the Japanese fleet a code phrase to indicate they had achieved complete surprise, and the attack had begun:“Tora, tora, tora!” 
0751December 7th was to be an easy day for the 14th Pursuit Wing at Wheeler Army Airfield. For the last week the base had been abuzz with activity as P-36 and P-40 fighters took off to support training exercises and alerts. The constant activity wore heavily on both men and material, and this Sunday – the first in months to be on a more relaxed level of alert – was looked forward to as a well-deserved chance for ground crews to catch up on maintenance, and for the pilots to catch up on rest. To help guard their aircraft from sabotage during the downtime, most of the fighters at Wheeler had been taken out of their protective revetments and placed into the center of the airfields, with their ammunition secured and locked away.As the first wave of Japanese dive-bombers approached Wheeler, their pilots could hardly believe their luck – and the Americans would have little chance to rectify their mistake. Dozens of planes dove on Wheeler in rapid succession, bombing the airfields, hangers, and support facilities. Fighters strafed whatever undamaged aircraft remained, and within minutes nearly the entire active fighting strength of the 14th Pursuit Wing – nearly a hundred aircraft – were left burning on the tarmac. A handful working fighters were later able to take off from Wheeler and other bases around the island, helping to shoot down several attacking planes. But these operational aircraft were few and far between – and as the bulk of the first wave approached Pearl Harbor, they would find the skies almost entirely uncontested. 
Naval History and Heritage Command 0753Located on the opposite side of Oahu from Pearl Harbor, Kaneohe Bay Naval Air Station housed the eyes of the US Pacific Fleet: 3 Patrol Squadrons with 33 total PBY Catalina flying boats. With a range of over 2,000 miles, these flying boats were one of the first lines of defense for the US Navy on Oahu – and that made them a priority target on the morning of December 7th.Just a mile away from the base was the home of Chief Aviation Ordnanceman John Finn. That morning, he was with his wife Alice when he suddenly heard machine-gun fire and quickly got in his vehicle to race to base. Upon arrival, he found Japanese fighters were strafing PBYs on the ground while sailors and marines tried to fight back with whatever weapons they could get their hands on. Without hesitation, Chief Finn quickly secured a machine-gun, placing the movable tripod in an open area with a clear view of the attacking aircraft, and began firing back. In his exposed position he was struck 21 times, but he continued to man his gun with complete disregard for his own safety. After being ordered to seek medical attention, despite obviously suffering much pain and moving with great difficulty, he returned to the area and actively supervised the rearming of returning planes. Chief Finn would become one of 16 men to receive the Medal of Honor for his actions that day. 
Official US Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives. 0755Just 20 feet above the glassy surface of Pearl Harbor, 20 B5N torpedo bombers bore down on their initial target. Their objective was to attack Carrier Row, on the western side of Ford Island, where the US Navy’s aircraft carriers were typically berthed.As he approached, Lieutenant Tsuyoshi Nagai recognized there were no worthwhile targets on this side of Ford Island – only some older cruisers, a seaplane tender, and the training ship USS Utah. He broke off his attack, as did most of the formation – but a handful pressed on. In moments, the Utah was struck twice, and the cruiser Raleigh once. At the same time, a desperate message began to hit the radio airwaves on all frequencies. Sent in plain English to every ship and naval installation that could hear it, it simply stated: AIR RAID PEARL HARBOR THIS IS NOT DRILL 
Naval History and Heritage Command 0758In the first few minutes of the attack, many of the sailors and marines of the US Pacific Fleet had no idea they were already at war. Many thought the planes flying overhead were because of an unannounced Army exercise, that the fires rising from the airfields were due to training accidents. When Ensign Roland S. Brooks aboard the battleship West Virginia saw an explosion on Ford Island he thought a tragedy had occurred aboard the battleship California and ordered an Away Fire and Rescue Party to assist.During the confusion, 20 B5Ns, lead by Lieutenant Commander Shigeharu Murata, began their approach. One after another, their planes flew over the shipyard and down the Southeast Loch to line up their torpedo attacks against Battleship Row. By the time the American sailors realized what was happening, it was already too late – as one after another, massive geysers of water and smoke began exploding against the sides of their ships. West Virginia and Oklahoma were gutted, hit by 7-9 torpedoes each, while one torpedo struck Nevada, and two hit California. These ships were capsizing, losing, power, flooding, and on fire. Their crews fought valiantly to save their ships while fighting back against the attack. Nevada and California were able to remain afloat, but West Virginia and Oklahoma sank. The heroic actions from the West Virginia’s crew enabled them to counter flood the ship and keep her upright, saving the lives of hundreds of men. Oklahoma was not as fortunate and overturned with over four hundred men trapped inside. In just these few minutes, the Pacific Fleet suffered a crippling blow. For the Japanese Navy, the attack was already an unqualified success – and it had only just begun. 
Naval History and Heritage Command 0806Tied up along the repair ship USS Vestal, Arizona had been spared from the initial torpedo assault but high above battleship row, a new threat appeared – bombers. Carrying massive 800kg armor-piercing bombs, these planes had been given the mission of attacking Battleship Row from above.Most would miss. Some bombs struck their targets but failed to explode or exploded too early to cause significant damage. One bounced Arizona’s heavily armored turret #4, ricochetting into the deck and exploding in a machine shop. Then, Lt. Comdr. Kasumi Tadashi’s shotai of five aircraft from Hiryu approached. His bombardier, Lt.(jg) Kondo Shojiro, released the ordnance. From 10,000 feet, it took less then 30 seconds to strike Arizona, punch through the armored deck, and crash into the forward magazines, where hundreds of thousands of pounds of gunpower was stored. The resulting explosion gutted Arizona, blowing out her sides and nearly severing the bow. She sank rapidly as her front half caved in, while everything still above the surface burned ferociously. That morning, 1,512 men had called the USS Arizona home. Only 335, including those off the ship at the time of the attack, would survive. 
Wikipedia 0850Far away from Pearl Harbor, Japanese envoys Kichisaburō Nomura and Saburō Kurusu were just entering the office of the United States Secretary of State, Cordell Hull. Appointed by Japan to negotiate peace with the United States, the pair had done their best to try and reconcile the contradictory demands of their nation and those of the United States. Despite their best efforts, and unbeknownst to them, their nation had already decided to go to war—and as such, without knowing why, they were instructed to present a 14-point response to the latest American demands at 1pm Washington time - 7:30am Hawaii time. Due to delays decoding and translating the message, Nomura and Kurusu would not arrive at Secretary Hull’s office until 2:05pm and would not meet Hull until 2:20pm. Upon arriving, they handed Hull the message and he was openly furious upon reading the message in its entirety. What Hull knew, and the Japanese envoys did not, was that Pearl Harbor was actively under attack – and that even if the message had been delivered on time, it was not itself a formal declaration of war. His fury at Japan’s duplicity, pretending to negotiate while actively preparing for war, would be echoed by the American people as a whole — and would actively shape the response to the attack on Pearl Harbor. 
Wikipedia 0854After the initial wave of attack against Pearl Harbor, there was a brief lull as most of the Japanese planes departed. The damage they had inflicted was severe: three battleships, Arizona, Oklahoma, and West Virginia, were unequivocally sunk. Another, California, was sinking slowly as her crew desperately fought to save their ship.The clear blue waters of the harbor had become choked with burning oil and thick columns of black smoke rose high into a cloud-covered sky. Many sailors found it difficult to see through the stinging, acrid smoke, but those that could soon spotted shapes diving through the clouds: the second wave. Unlike the first, the second wave of Japanese attackers consisted entirely of dive bombers. With the majority of battleships sunk, their mission was to try and sink the Pacific Fleet’s cruisers, which at this point were mostly unscathed. But this time, as they approached Pearl Harbor, the Americans were ready. A ferocious barrage of anti-aircraft fire greeted the second wave, sending many of them crashing down into the harbor. Planes dipped into and out of the clouds as they searched for targets, and many concentrated their efforts on the battleship Nevada as she barreled toward the mouth of the harbor. The destroyers Cassin and Downes were hit in drydock, leaving them flaming wrecks. On both sides, the casualties mounted. 
0910Throughout the second wave of attack the USS Nevada found herself to be the primary target of countless dive bombers. Despite the damage she received in the first wave of attack, the USS Nevada was able to make her way toward the mouth of Pearl Harbor. Seeing this battleship making her way through the harbor, Imperial Japanese Navy pilots saw an opportunity to potentially block the harbor by sinking the USS Nevada as she continued on her course. As she made her way down the harbor, she drew cheers from the shore and stationary ships as sailors witnessed her tenacity. However, while Nevada’s run raised morale briefly, she was sinking ever-lower in the water. The Nevada suffered a minimum of six bomb hits and one torpedo hit, she was taking on water at a rapid pace. Ultimately, the decision was made to beach the USS Nevada and at 0910 she was run aground at Hospital Point. The USS Nevada suffered 57 casualties among the nearly 1,500 men that served onboard at the time of the attack. Battle StationsAs the attack was occurring, Sailors ran to their assigned stations prepared to defend their ship.Dean Darrow, USS West Virginia, recounted helping transport ammunition to the ship’s anti-aircraft guns when he was suddenly knocked into the water by a concussion from a bomb. Darrow lost consciousness in the blast but was kept afloat by a lifejacket that his shipmate had handed him just moments earlier. He came to as he was being pulled onto a liberty boat when suddenly, he heard a sailor onboard yell “Duck!”. Darrow has no further recollections from that day as he was knocked out yet again and would not regain consciousness for another three days. Clare Hetrick, USS Arizona, and Stephen Bower Young, USS Oklahoma, were each responsible on their respective ships for setting up the hoist to transfer ammunition. Both felt safe within their armored turrets as they worked. Hetrick credits the heavy armor for saving his life during the explosion that took the USS Arizona. As the bomb struck the Arizona, Hetrick and his shipmates were all knocked over and could smell the fires spreading through the ship. They unanimously decided to abandon ship and were able to swim ashore, but Young wasn’t as lucky. As the Oklahoma listed, water began to rush into the turret. Young tried to escape the Oklahoma but quickly discovered that he was trapped inside. Young and a group of shipmates ultimately decided to make their way to the ship’s lost and found to wait for rescue. Jack Evans, USS Tennessee, was able to witness the sinking of the West Virginia, the Oklahoma capsizing, and the explosion on the Arizona all from his post at the foremast of the USS Tennessee. The Tennessee herself was struck by two bombs during which Evans was hit by shrapnel but he didn’t realize he was injured until hours later. 
Wikipedia Doris "Dorie" Miller“I have not yet begun to fight!”Doris “Dorie” Miller, a 22-year-old mess attendant on the USS West Virginia, was helping carry wounded sailors, including the ship’s commanding officer Captain Bennion, to safety after the first wave of attack. According to Navy Rear Admiral .John Fuller, "Miller went topside, carried wounded on his shoulders, made several trips up and down, wading through waist-deep water, oil-slicked decks, struggling uphill on slick decks." Upon spotting the second wave, Captain Bennion gave orders to crew members to defend the ship and fight. Miller was directed to a .50-caliber anti-aircraft machine gun and, despite having no experience with the weapon, fired it until he ran out of ammunition. Miller said, "It wasn't hard…I just pulled the trigger and she worked fine. I had watched the others with these guns. I guess I fired her for about 15 minutes. I think I got one of those [Japanese] planes. They were diving pretty close to us." When the attack finally ended, Miller went back to his previous task of moving injured sailors from the water to the quarterdeck, unquestionably saving the lives of numerous men who might otherwise have been lost. Miller would later be awarded the Navy Cross for his actions that day. 
US Department of the Navy, Bureau of Medicine and Surgery Nurses and Medical ResponseAs the attack raged on, the women of the Army and Navy nurse corps sprang into action. Onboard the Solace, Lt. Willgrube had been sleeping when the hospital ship suddenly shook and she was jarred awake. She looked out the porthole in her room and was able to see the smoke pouring out of the USS Arizona. She, and the other nurses onboard the Solace reported to duty immediately and were working around the clock to treat the men brought aboard the ship. Willgrube recalled that even though they had never conducted any disaster drills, every person just instinctively knew what to do thanks to their military training. Lt. Anna Busby, Tripler General Hospital, was sick and on bedrest that morning but immediately jumped in to help as men began arriving at the hospital. As wounded started to arrive in droves, Busby and her fellow nurses worked as fast and as efficiently as they could, ensuring that every man was tended to. On Hickam, chief nurse Lt. Annie Fox remained calm through the chaos, rallying the nurses and organizing the hospital’s response to the assault. Fox administered anesthesia to patients during the bombardment, directed nurses to various tasks, and taught volunteers to make bandages for the wounded men. Hospitals all around the island were overwhelmed with hundreds of casualties suffering from injury and shock. Nurses triaged patients and even used their lipstick to mark the foreheads of the wounded as to whether they had received morphine or a tetanus shot. "From their first realization of an enemy attack, the doctors, dentists, nurses, and corpsmen were unexcelled in personal bravery, in determination, in resourcefulness, and in their capacity to put into practice previously formulated plans," the U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command wrote in its account of the attack. Through their courage and determination, the women of the nurse corps saved countless lives following the December 7th attack. 
US National Archives RescueJulio DeCastro, a civilian worker at the naval shipyard, looked out at the harbor and saw the Oklahoma overturned. Instinctively, he took initiative and immediately organized a group of about 20 volunteers. They each gathered equipment and set out to rescue the men that they could hear tapping inside the ship.There were significant complications with their rescue efforts including risk of cutting into a fuel tank and starting a fire, water levels rising within the ship caused by the release of air, and the echoing of tapping making it nearly impossible to know exactly where the sailors were within the ship. Despite this the men worked around the clock and finally, after 25 grueling hours, DeCastro’s team cut into #4 radio compartment, freeing six trapped sailors. As these men were escaping the ship they told the rescuers that there were men still trapped in the neighboring room. DeCastro assured them that they would get those men out. The neighboring compartment was the ship’s lost and found and waiting inside was a group of 11 sailors, including Stephen Bower Young. As the crew started cutting into the wall, the sailors reported that the water level was rising. Joe Bulgo, a civilian on DeCastro’s team, was cutting into the wall and to save time, switched from chisel to sledgehammer to quickly knock out the section. After 60 minutes Joe finally broke through the wall and pulled out all 11 sailors inside. In all DeCastro and his team rescued 32 men from the USS Oklahoma, the most successful rescue operation at Pearl Harbor. |
Last updated: December 7, 2025