Hitler's Third Reich and World War II in the News is a daily edited review of WWII news, providing thought-provoking collection of hand-picked WW2 information.

WW2 category: Attack on Pearl Harbor - 7 Dec 1941  -- See latest WWII news here. See also 'War Flags', 'Battle of Okinawa', 'Battle of Iwo Jima', 'History Tours', 'American Homefront'.

Report buries theory that the US leaders heard a coded warning about Pearl Harbor     nytimes.com :: 2008-12-07
It has been one of WWII's most-debated mysteries: Who in Washington knew what and when before the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941? Specifically: who saw a transcript of a Tokyo shortwave radio news broadcast that was interrupted by a prearranged coded weather report? Witnesses stated that the "winds execute" message was caught Dec. 4, three days before the attack. But after analysing American and foreign intelligence sources and decrypted cables, historians for the National Security Agency revealed that whatever other warnings reached Washington about the attack, the "winds execute" message was not one of them.    

WWII pilot Thomas McKelvey recalls Pearl Harbor attack     charleston.net :: 2008-12-07
Thomas McKelvey believed he'd won a great assignment after finishing Navy pilot school in 1941. He imagined what flying adventures awaited as he headed to his duty station on the beautiful islands of Hawaii. He arrived at the Navy base in Pearl Harbor only 2 weeks before the Japanese attack that thrust America into World War Two. "I was awakened by an explosion... I looked out the window, and I could see smoke coming from a hangar at the end of the island. Then someone came running down the hall yelling, 'General quarters, general quarters. This is not a drill.'" McKelvey frantically pulled on a shirt and pants and ran outside. Chaos reigned.    

U.S. planned their own "day of infamy" attacks long before Japanese     onlineathens.com :: 2008-12-07
The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor might never have took place if the U.S. government had carried out a secret plan to send a fleet of bombers flying over Japan for a pre-emptive strike. Nationalist Chinese leader Chiang Kai-shek, President Franklin Roosevelt's adviser Lauchlin Currie and Claire Chennault (leader of the Flying Tigers groups) devised the plan to bomb Japan in Dec 1940. Alan Armstrong uncovered the documents from the U.S. archives, and used them as the basis for book "Preemptive Strike: The Secret Plan That Would Have Prevented the Attack on Pearl Harbor." FDR approved the plan to bomb Japan, but chief of staff George Marshall opposed it. [Buy from Amazon: US, UK, CA, DE, FR]    

Pearl Harbor: Hawaii Was Surprised; FDR Was Not     thenewamerican.com :: 2008-12-06
In a pre-war gallup 88% opposed U.S. involvement in the war, and in a 1940 speech FDR stated: "Your boys are not going to be sent into any foreign wars." But privately FDR planned the opposite, dispatching Harry Hopkins to meet Churchill in Jan 1941 with the message: "The President is determined that we shall win the war together." During WWII's early days FDR offered numerous provocations to Germany: freezing its assets; shipping destroyers to UK; depth-charging U-boats. The Germans did not react - so FDR switched his focus to Japan. Lieutenant Commander Arthur H. McCollum's memo urged 8 actions to lead Japan into attacking the America. FDR enacted all 8 steps.    

Pearl Harbor survivor: "You could see the pilot in the cockpit... You could see his helmet."     philly.com :: 2008-07-30
Paul E. Brown Sr., a Navy veteran who pulled through the explosion of his ship during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, was in 7 major naval battles during World War II, including the Battle of Santa Cruz Islands, the Guadalcanal, the Battle of Savo Island. At 7:55 a.m., as Japanese bombers and torpedo planes began their assault, he was asleep below decks on the destroyer USS Shaw. "I went up... and I saw Japanese planes go by at very low altitude. You could see the pilot in the cockpit of the plane. You could see his helmet... Some guys swear they looked down at you and smiled." Brown asked "What's going on?" - and got the answer: "The Japs are attacking."    

A mission to restore Husband Kimmel's rank     nysun.com :: 2008-04-08
Thomas Kimmel Jr. is trying to restore the 4-star admiral rank of Admiral Husband Kimmel, who commanded the Pacific fleet during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Relieved of his command he was haunted by the attack until his death: "You could not talk to the man for 2 minutes before Pearl Harbor came up." A commission by Roosevelt in 1941 leveled a charge of dereliction of duty. But the Naval Court of Inquiry, the only one of the 9 probes in his lifetime in which he was allowed to cross question witnesses, cleared him. Professor Michael Gannon said Admiral Kimmel was a scapegoat for incompetence in Washington.    

Dealing with aftermath of Pearl Harbor - Food rationing     contracostatimes :: 2007-12-24
Americans were still staggering from the shock of Pearl Harbor when Safeway management published a part of Franklin D. Roosevelt's Dec. 9, 1941, message: "...we should not have to curtail the normal articles of food. There is enough food for all of us and enough left over to send to those who are fighting on the same side with us." --- Within 5 months nationwide rationing was set up: Meat, sugar, butter, coffee as well as gasoline, tires and shoes were among the rationed items. One hundred million books containing stamps were printed. It listed your name, address, height and weight. Coupon 25 was good for one pound of coffee and coupon 17 entitled to one pair of shoes.     [America during World War II - United States Home front]

Significance of Pearl Harbor - Essay winners     blueridgenow :: 2007-12-24
On December 7, 1941 the Japanese unexpectedly raided Pearl Harbor, all of a sudden thrusting our unprepared nation into World War II. Sadly, many of us have forgotten the true significance of Pearl Harbor. Pearl Harbor, as an event frozen in history, seldom excites the same patriotism today as it did in 1941, when our nation's rallying cry was "Remember Pearl Harbor!" The attack also struck the death blow to isolationism, which had kept America divided and neutral. Infuriated by the treacherous attack, the people of our nation united in unanimous support of the war effort.    

Pearl Harbor: Americans in vintage World War I uniforms and weapons     times-herald :: 2007-12-09
Robert Pittman thought he'd found paradise: 98th Coastal Artillery Regiment was busy during the day with training drills, but time off was plentiful and the surroundings were sensational. When he reported for duty, troops were wearing out-of-date World War I uniforms. The weapons were mostly WWI vintage, including aging antiaircraft artillery and water-cooled, inefficient 30-caliber machine guns. Although Pearl Harbor is often viewed as an attack on Naval forces, dozens of Japanese warplanes focused on airfields. Before the day was over, the Army Air Corps lost 97 planes at Hickam Field and Wheeler Field.    

1941 Pearl Harbor attack fading from American consciousness     reflector :: 2007-12-08
Article no longer available from the original source.
When approached at Greenville's Colonial Mall, more than a dozen people refused to comment on the significance of the Pearl Harbor attacks, citing a lack of knowledge about the events that day. Others said they knew the raid on Pearl Harbor was a defining moment in history, but they did not know many details about it. "I think that is when we were attacked by the Germans or something like that," one middle-aged lady said. 15 of 27 people said they did not know the anniversary of Pearl Harbor was coming near, and 8 of those 15 did not know what took place at Pearl Harbor.    

Tora, tora, tora pilot Mitsuo Fuchida left memoirs of world war 2     deseretnews :: 2007-12-07
Manuscripts of an autobiography by Mitsuo Fuchida, the pilot who led the air attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, and sent the famous signal - "Tora, tora, tora" - that indicated that total surprise had been achieved, have been kept by his son. The manuscripts depict the briefing on the attacks that his father, then a lieutenant commander in the Imperial Japanese Navy, gave to Emperor Showa, and recount how rivalry affected major strategies, stories that had so far remained untold. Fuchida commanded the air squadron on the aircraft carrier Akagi, which was among the carriers used in the attack on Pearl Harbor.     [Attack on Pearl Harbor - 7 Dec 1941]

First Pearl Harbor attack photos given to Museum of Flight in Seattle     spokesmanreview.com :: 2007-12-04
Memorabilia from World War II Army Air Corps officer Lee Embree, who snapped the first known photos of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, will be on permanent display at the Museum of Flight in Seattle. Embree and his crew on the B-17E were traveling to their next assignment at Hickam Field, Hawaii. As they neared the island, the crew saw Japanese planes and smoke. Low on fuel and with no ammunition, they circled the island, looking for a landing place. Embree, leaning out of the plane, snapped photos with his 35-pound camera. One shot showed the USS Arizona billowing smoke in the background.    

Film historian offering Pearl Harbor program     honoluluadv. :: 2007-11-21
Film historian Steven Fredrick, who collects rare Hawai'i-themed films, will present a 2-pronged program of historic World War II film shorts and a related Downtown walking tour geared to give the war a historic perspective timed to the upcoming 66th anniversary of the Dec. 7 attack on Pearl Harbor. He has assembled a blend of films that depict Hawai'i during the war years. The program will include "Hawaii During World War II: The Movies and the Music of the 1940s," with vintage newsreel images filmed during the attack by Japan at Pearl Harbor.    

Report knew: Pearl Harbor attack would happen at 7:30 on a Sunday     kauaiworld :: 2006-12-11
Did U.S. Army Air Corps Maj. Gen. Gerald Brant tried to prevent the Dec. 7, 1941, sneak attack on Pearl Harbor. Brant embraced theories by his mentor, Brig. Gen. Billy Mitchell, that the US wasn't ready to take on Japan in a war. In the mid-1920s, Mitchell produced a report warning Japanese military forces would overwhelm the Hawaiian Islands at 7:30 a.m. on a Sunday. The attack on Pearl Harbor occurred at 7:53 a.m., Dec. 7, 1941 - a Sunday. In addition, he predicted an attack on Ni'ihau as well. In line with that theory, Brant urged owners of Ni'ihau Island to plow up two-thirds of the island 1933-1941.     [Attack on Pearl Harbor - 7 Dec 1941]

Pearl Harbor memorabilia a way to remember historic event     herald-dispatch :: 2006-12-11
Article no longer available from the original source.
"Dec. 7, 1941 - a date which will live in infamy..." began the speech Franklin Roosevelt after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Most any war, but particularly this one creates memorabilia that collectors seek for years to come. "Remember Pearl Harbor" became the battle cry in the Pacific. The phrase first appeared in a Portland newspaper, on Dec 9, 1941. Today, collectors look for that edition. Medals, plaques, letters associated with the Pearl Harbor attack are out there for the interested collector to scarf up. The original negatives of photos that documented the Dec 7, 1941, event were offered for sale at a $10,000.    

Attack on Pearl Harbor - Gun blazing, he held his ground     dfw :: 2006-12-08
200 parked airplanes burned, 18 mighty ships hit, 2,400 dead, a feeling of national invincibility lost. But battles are not just won or lost at the strategic level. Ralph C. Riddle scored his own, small, victory. "All you could hear was this drone of planes. You couldn't see nothing because of the smoke. I wouldn't have known a Jap plane if I'd seen it. I opened up on him, probably put 15 rounds in him." He was interrupted by his lieutenant: "Did you shoot that plane down?" "Yes, sir." "You shot down one of our planes," the lieutenant yelled. "Sir, I don't know whose it was, but it dropped a bomb, so I shot it down."    

Diary records confusion, fear after Pearl Harbor attack     mysanantonio :: 2006-12-08
Juanita Vitousek was awakened by explosions. "Why do they need to have target practice on Sunday morning?" she wondered, blaming U.S. military aircraft. Then the phone rang. "The island is under attack by Japanese planes!" her husband Roy cried. --- Dec 15: Roy says the police have not found a single authentic case of sabotage. That doesn't look like a very big fifth column. ... During the first air raid, some young Japanese ... took up guns and joining the soldiers in a machine gun nest blazed away at the enemy. The Army ... has always said that if we had an attack here, the Japanese would rise in a body and murder us all.    

Battle of Pearl Harbor adversaries meet face-to-face     starbulletin :: 2006-12-07
On Dec. 7, 1941, Japanese Imperial Navy navigator Takeshi Maeda guided his Kate bomber to Pearl Harbor and fired a torpedo that helped sink the USS West Virginia. In Pearl Harbor, U.S. Navy signalman John Rauschkolb, stood on the West Virginia's port side as a series of Japanese planes pummeled the battleship with 5-7 torpedoes and two bombs. The West Virginia lost 106 men in the assault. Maeda and Rauschkolb, now both 85, met face to face for the first time. "He may have been shooting at me," Rauschkolb said as he shook Maeda's hand at a meeting on the 65th anniversary of the attack.    

Tojo ordered strike on Pearl Harbor according to Hirohito interview     historynewsnetwork :: 2006-10-23
Records of an interview given by Emperor Hirohito - known posthumously as Emperor Showa - after Japan's surrender in World War II show him naming wartime military leader Hideki Tojo as responsible for the sneak 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor. Historians had long speculated about who gave the order for the attack on the U.S. naval base in Hawaii that brought U.S. forces into WWII. Until now, no documents had been found in Japan that named Tojo as responsible. Records of the Sept. 25, 1945, interview by Hugh Baillie and Frank Kluckhohn were found in the Archives and Mausolea Department of the Imperial Household Agency.    

Pearl Harbor Attack - Photos, written stories and video clips     reuters :: 2006-09-10
Article no longer available from the original source.
Historians and witnesses of Japan's surprise air attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec 7, 1941 are using the net to preserve their memories of the day that drew the U.S. into World War II. The Pearl Harbor Memorial Fund unveiled its Pearl Harbor Survivor Project Web Site that includes photos, written stories and video clips of the raid. It aims to find living witnesses of the air and sea attack. Contributor Ansil Saunders was in the Navy when warships, aircraft carriers and airstrips on and around Pearl Harbor came under siege. He also helped recover bodies from sunken battleships like the USS Oklahoma and the USS Arizona.    

The Battle of Niihau: Tiny island 100 miles from Pearl Harbor     bellaonline :: 2006-07-21
The tiny island of Niihau is kapu (forbidden) to outsiders, hence its nickname "The Forbidden Island". When Pearl Harbor was attacked, the news did not reach the island. Japanese pilots were instructed to land on Niihau if they met any trouble, as intelligence believed the island to be uninhabited. Airman 1st Class, Shigenori Nishikaichi did just that when his Zero encountered anti-aircraft fire. Ishimatsu Shintani was summoned to translate. He sensed trouble and was hesitant to do so. Next Yoshio Harada was called upon. He spoke with the pilot and learned of the Pearl Harbor attack. He kept it a secret and began plotting with the enemy pilot.    

Admiral Kimmel was made a scapegoat for Pearl Harbor     theroyalgazette :: 2006-07-20
Mr. Kimmel spoke about his mission to get the US to admit that his late grandfather Admiral Husband E. Kimmel was unjustly made a scapegoat for the unpreparedness of the US Pacific Fleet when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. Admiral Kimmel was a 4-star Admiral at the time. He has a compelling case, which has been backed up by an increasing body of secret documents declassified in the US and the Soviet Union that supports his belief that his two men were the "fall guys" for the Pearl Harbor attack. Vital information was withheld about the increasing likelihood that the Japanese were planning a surprise attack.    

Isolationists until the bombing of Pearl Harbor     wednesdayjournal :: 2006-05-25
Until the bombing of Pearl Harbor, John Kearney's family had all been isolationists. They believed the British were sending propaganda to the US to try to pull them into the war. The DesMoines Register had been printing a series of false propaganda that the British had used to bring the US into WW1. But all of that changed on Dec. 7. After boot camp Kearney shipped out and wound up in a place at that time called Point Gloucester. One night he and his comrades were sleeping in hammocks on the beach when Japanese Imperial Marines swam ashore armed only with knives and intending to take the very beach on which the GI's were sleeping.    

Pearl Harbor attack a strategic failure for Japan     news-record :: 2006-03-06
Japan's two-year "window of opportunity" resulted in its decision to go to war in the Pacific. Japan needed resources to become the world power, and the resources in the south were too great a magnet. The only power that could oppose it was the US. So strategic plan was formed: With a massive first strike, Japan would destroy the US Navy based at Pearl Harbor. The battle plan: In late Nov 1941 sail a huge Imperial Japanese Navy fleet across the northern Pacific. When the fleet was 200 miles north of Hawaii, aircraft carrier planes would be sent out to bomb the US naval base, sinking as many of the ships as possible.     [Strategy & Tactics - WW2 warfare]

Couple relives bombing of Pearl Harbor     6NEWS :: 2005-12-26
They remember exactly where they were when the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor put the U.S. in the Second World War. But they remember better than others because they were living in Honolulu near Allen's duty station at Pearl Harbor. The start of the war coincided almost exactly with the start of their marriage. The Japanese sneak attack lasted nearly two hours, coming in two waves. When it was over, 2,400 Americans were dead, the U.S. Pacific fleet was crippled and the world had changed forever. Allen left immediately for his ship and arrived before the bombing was over. He came under fire at the gate to the harbor and later while taking a launch to his ship.     [Attack on Pearl Harbor - 7 Dec 1941]

7 December 1941: Japanese planes bomb Pearl Harbor     bbc :: 2005-05-17
Japan has launched a surprise attack on the American naval base at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii and has declared war on Britain and the United States. The US president, Franklin D Roosevelt, has mobilised all his forces and is poised to declare war on Japan. Details of the attack in Hawaii are scarce but initial reports say Japanese bombers and torpedo-carrying planes targeted warships, aircraft and military installations in Pearl Harbor. At 0755 local time the first wave of between 50 and 150 planes struck the naval base for 35 minutes causing several fires and "untold damage" to the Pacific Fleet.    

With war so widely expected, why was US so ill-prepared?     bbc :: 2004-05-17
With war so widely expected, why was US so woefully ill-prepared? Rumours that began in the war are still hanging around, well past their sell-by date, fuelled by revisionist historians and conspiracy cranks. They claim Roosevelt was itching for war with Japan but was constrained by US neutrality, so needed a solid reason to fight. Hence they accuse him of suppressing prior knowledge of the attack, or of provoking it to enable America to enter the war by the back door. Some even say that the attack on Pearl Harbor was deliberately engineered by a crypto-communist president guilty of high treason.    

Three Japanese airmen - Attack on the US fleet in Pearl Harbor     marcus_perkins :: 2004-04-19
After the war, the three Japanese airmen, together with their surviving comrades from all branches of the Imperial Japanese military were either ignored or shunned by their fellow citizens. ---Kaname Harada was a natural pilot. Of the 1500 men who signed up with him to become navy pilots, only 26 completed the brutal four year selection and training process. Harada was awarded a watch by the Emperor for being the best graduate in his cohort. Strong, handsome and intelligent, he was the perfect candidate for the Japanese military.     [Japanese Imperial Army]

Japanese Pearl Harbor midget submarine found     bbc :: 2002-08-29
A historic Japanese submarine has been discovered on the ocean floor a few miles from Pearl Harbor. The 78-foot (24-metre) sub could provide the first physical evidence to back US claims that it fired first against Japan in World War II and inflicted the first casualties. The sub fell prey to a US Navy destroyer on 7 Dec 1941, the day of the Pearl Harbor attack. "It's the shot that started WWII between the Americans and the Japanese." The vessel was one of four Japanese midget submarines to participate in the Pearl Harbor attack. The newly discovered sub was believed to be the one sunk by the destroyer USS Ward more than an hour before the attack.     [Midget submarines]

See also:
'War Flags'
'Battle of Okinawa'
'Battle of Iwo Jima'
'History Tours'
'American Homefront'.

Although the articles linked from Adolf Hitler's Third Reich 1933-1945 and World War II in the News are reviewed and specially selected, they do not necessarily represent the views of the editor, who is not responsible for the content of any external sites. This service is © Joni Nuutinen 2005-2009. All rights reserved.