View Full Version : Pearl Harbor 61 years ago today
Time of this posting 05:25 Hawaiian time.
The first wave of Japanese aircraft have been brought up on the deck and crews are beginning to warm up their engines. It consists of 83 fighters, bombers, and torpedo planes. Comdr. Mitsuo Fuchida, leader of the flight, has just taken off and will watch as the carriers begin turning into the wind.
Launch is just 35 minutes away.
Destroyer USS Ward is still searching for the submarine reported by the minesweeper USS Condor at 03:42 local time
Takeda Shingen
12-07-12, 10:45 AM
A date that will live in infamy. May we never forget.
http://www.pearl-harbor.com/arizona/images/arizona_memorial_pearl_harbor.jpg
Jimbuna
12-07-12, 11:07 AM
A date that will live in infamy. May we never forget.
http://www.pearl-harbor.com/arizona/images/arizona_memorial_pearl_harbor.jpg
~SALUTE~
Also the memory of my late father.
mookiemookie
12-07-12, 11:47 AM
At the time of this posting, it's 6:45 AM Hawaii time.
The WARD opens fire at 100 yards. Her first round - the first shot fired in WWII by American Forces - misses. She closes to point blank range (50 yards) and fires a 4-inch shell hitting the midget submarine's conning tower. WARD overruns her target and the midget submarine wallows in her wake. Outerbridge orders four depth charges dropped. At 0651, he signals 14th Naval District Headquarters:
"WE HAVE ATTACKED FIRED UPON AND DROPPED DEPTH CHARGES
UPON SUBMARINE OPERATING IN DEFENSIVE SEA AREA."
Sailor Steve
12-07-12, 11:50 AM
Pearl Harbor 61 years ago today
Um, actually it was 71 years ago today. :sunny:
Time to watch Tora! Tora! Tora! again.
AVGWarhawk
12-07-12, 12:07 PM
A day that spurned the world into war. A beginning of what we call "The Greatest Generation."
I salute my following family members who served in WW2:
Jean Schultheis: Navy WAVE PTO. Died Feb 2006
Charles Schultheis: B-17 pilot. Died June 13th 1943 over Kiel Germany going after the sub pens.
Edward Schultheis: torpedo/aircraft mechanic PTO. Died this year Oct 2012
Three kids that fought a war.
At the time of this posting it is 07:02 Hawaii time:
The Army’s Opana Mobile Radar Station is one of six radar stations on Oahu. Radar is a new defense tool in Hawaii; the system has been in operation for less than a month.
"One of the two privates on duty looks at the radar oscilloscope and can’t believe his eyes. He asks his buddy to take a look—and he confirms the sighting: 50 or more aircraft on a bearing for Oahu. The privates call the Fort Shafter information center, the hub of the radar network."
Um, actually it was 71 years ago today. :sunny:
You're right. Fix it moderator boy! :)
Sailor Steve
12-07-12, 12:45 PM
I can't, or I would have. Neon is the only moderator here. He or Neal can make repairs, and no one else.
Well doesn't matter. We have no time!
At the time of this posting it is 07:49 Hawaii time:
Air-attack commander Mitsuo Fuchida, looking down on Pearl Harbor, sees no aircraft carriers, which the Japanese hoped to destroy and thus thwart U.S. retaliation. He orders his telegraph operator to tap out to, to, to: attack. Then other taps: to ra, to ra, to ra: attack, surprise achieved.
Though not meant to have a double meaning, to ra is read by some Japanese pilots as tora—tiger. And according to a Japanese saying, “A tiger goes out 1,000 ri [2,000 miles/3,218 kilometers] and returns without fail.”
Sailor Steve
12-07-12, 12:52 PM
Three kids that fought a war.
One of my uncles was at Pearl Harbor. He survived the war, but not a heart attack at age 40. Two other uncles also fought in the war. I have no records, so I don't know what branches they served in or where.
AVGWarhawk
12-07-12, 12:55 PM
One of my uncles was at Pearl Harbor. He survived the war, but not a heart attack at age 40. Two other uncles also fought in the war. I have no records, so I don't know what branches they served in or where.
These were my uncles and aunt. Jean became may aunt through marriage to Edward Schultheis. Married right after the war. Wedding photo of them in their dress uniforms. Great photo!
http://i133.photobucket.com/albums/q62/avgwarhawk/scan.jpg
http://i133.photobucket.com/albums/q62/avgwarhawk/PIC_0182.jpg
Well doesn't matter. We have no time!
At the time of this posting it is 07:49 Hawaii time:
Air-attack commander Mitsuo Fuchida, looking down on Pearl Harbor, sees no aircraft carriers, which the Japanese hoped to destroy and thus thwart U.S. retaliation. He orders his telegraph operator to tap out to, to, to: attack. Then other taps: to ra, to ra, to ra: attack, surprise achieved.
Though not meant to have a double meaning, to ra is read by some Japanese pilots as tora—tiger. And according to a Japanese saying, “A tiger goes out 1,000 ri [2,000 miles/3,218 kilometers] and returns without fail.”
It's just a bunch of B-17s from the mainland.
Time to watch Tora! Tora! Tora! again.
Good idea! *puts his copy on*
Bilge_Rat
12-07-12, 02:18 PM
My wife's uncle died two days ago, aged 88. He served in the Canadian Army in WW2. Landed in Normandy on D+9 and served on the continent for the rest of the war. Last WW2 vet in either our families. Pretty soon, there wont be any of them left. :salute:
My own great-uncle served as a navigator in the RAF during WW2. His bomber was shot down over Burma, but he managed to walk back to the allied lines in a few weeks.
nikimcbee
12-07-12, 02:27 PM
At the time of this posting, it's 6:45 AM Hawaii time.
The WARD opens fire at 100 yards. Her first round - the first shot fired in WWII by American Forces - misses. She closes to point blank range (50 yards) and fires a 4-inch shell hitting the midget submarine's conning tower. WARD overruns her target and the midget submarine wallows in her wake. Outerbridge orders four depth charges dropped. At 0651, he signals 14th Naval District Headquarters:
"WE HAVE ATTACKED FIRED UPON AND DROPPED DEPTH CHARGES
UPON SUBMARINE OPERATING IN DEFENSIVE SEA AREA."
http://i-16tou.com/westloch/ward_midget.jpg
http://www.timemoneyandblood.com/images/PearlHarbor/pearlHarborAttack/midgetSub3.jpg
Hurray for the USNR:salute:.
At the time of this posting it is 09:37hrs Hawaiian local time:
A bomb blows off the bow of the destroyer Shaw; pieces of the ship rain down half a mile (.8 kilometer) away. A photo of the spectacular explosion becomes one of the best known images of December 7, 1941. Repair workers are on the job immediately. The Shaw eventually gets a new bow and is back in action by July 1942.
Except for the Arizona, Utah, and Oklahoma, every ship sunk or damaged on December 7 will sail again.
http://targetcentermass.net/images/uss_shaw.jpg
This is a great srticle concerning Pearl Harbor.:up:
http://news.msn.com/us/pearl-harbor-survivor-helps-identify-unknown-dead
Bilge_Rat
12-07-12, 03:05 PM
I had read that many of the sailors who died in the Arizona were trapped below when the ship sank so quickly right after the explosion. For 2-3 days afterwards, workers could hear trapped sailors banging on the bulkheads, hoping for a rescue, but nothing could be done for them.
Cybermat47
12-07-12, 03:14 PM
http://www.timemoneyandblood.com/images/PearlHarbor/pearlHarborAttack/midgetSub3.jpg
Poor Japs. At our War Memorial in Canberra, one of the many exhibits is the remains of M-14 and M-21 joined together.
The hull is so thin, you could have killed the two men inside with a well placed burst of sub-machine gun fire.
And the USS Arizona...that must have been hell on earth.
I hate war.
Sailor Steve
12-07-12, 04:56 PM
I had read that many of the sailors who died in the Arizona were trapped below when the ship sank so quickly right after the explosion. For 2-3 days afterwards, workers could hear trapped sailors banging on the bulkheads, hoping for a rescue, but nothing could be done for them.
That story is completely unsubstantiated. The forward magazine exploded, and the ship was in Condition X-Ray, meaning all watertight doors were open. The ship probably completely flooded within a minute, giving no one time to button up. The neighboring Oklahoma capsized, but the hull was still above water, giving some a chance to escape and others time to bang on the hull with tools. Thirty-two of them were saved. Most of them were not. They were likely already drowned. I have never seen the Arizona story corroborated by any real evidence.
I hate war.
I hope you never see it. It's not fun at all.
Jimbuna
12-07-12, 05:14 PM
That story is completely unsubstantiated. The forward magazine exploded, and the ship was in Condition X-Ray, meaning all watertight doors were open. The ship probably completely flooded within a minute, giving no one time to button up. The neighboring Oklahoma capsized, but the hull was still above water, giving some a chance to escape and others time to bang on the hull with tools. Thirty-two of them were saved. Most of them were not. They were likely already drowned. I have never seen the Arizona story corroborated by any real evidence.
I hope you never see it. It's not fun at all.
Agreed :yep:
Red October1984
12-07-12, 05:14 PM
This is wonderful timing, as i got SH4 not even a week ago.
The "Gallopping Ghost of the Japanese Coast" will get some virtual revenge. (Off topic, a CH-47 Chinook just flew over my house)
I salute every man and woman who served in any American war. Let's just say we got our revenge in 1945. But, I still hold the deepest respect for anyone who put on a uniform so that I may sleep safely at night. :salute:
Keep fighting troops! :salute:
Stealhead
12-07-12, 05:20 PM
Really and our own leadership can be blamed for how open we where to attack that day the Japanese merely took advantage of our lack of preparation of our lack of creative thinking a good leader always should expect his foes to fight dirty.War with Japan was inevitable and we where very poorly prepared.
Kptlt. Neuerburg
12-07-12, 07:27 PM
I offer a somber salute to all those of the United States Navy who perished on the Day of Infamy. Remeber Pearl Harbour and Never Forget those who laided down their in the defence of Freedom.
Platapus
12-07-12, 09:52 PM
While the focus is often on Pearl Harbour, let us also not forget that the attack included attacks on the Philippines, Wake Island, Guam, Malaya, Thailand, Shanghai, and Midway.
:salute:
One year from that infamous day, and seventy years ago, the situation in the Pacific could not seem more different. Whilst the Japanese still retained control of several key locations, their spearheads into new areas had been blunted, their carrier fleet mauled and below the bleachers of Stagg Field, history was in the making. It was the year when the war began to turn against the Axis, when Stalingrad and Guadalcanal failed to fall. :yep:
Bilge_Rat
12-08-12, 07:41 AM
That story is completely unsubstantiated. The forward magazine exploded, and the ship was in Condition X-Ray, meaning all watertight doors were open. The ship probably completely flooded within a minute, giving no one time to button up. The neighboring Oklahoma capsized, but the hull was still above water, giving some a chance to escape and others time to bang on the hull with tools. Thirty-two of them were saved. Most of them were not. They were likely already drowned. I have never seen the Arizona story corroborated by any real evidence.
According to Morison's official history of the U.S. Navy in WW2 (vol. 3, p.108):
"Arizona barely had time to sound General Quarters, man battle stations, and set Condition Zed (complete watertight integrity) when she received several lethal torpedo and bomb hits."
So either Arizona had set condition Zed or was in the process of doing so when the forward magazine exploded.
That story has been floating around for a long time and way before the interweb was around. I see you have heard it too. Whether there is any truth to it or it is an urban legend is hard to know now.
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