Lt. S.Kafloc
04-28-2014, 14:45
Japanese attack Pearl Harbor December 7th 1941.
131207
The air portion of the attack on Pearl Harbor began at 7:48 a.m. Hawaiian Time (3:18 a.m. December 8 Japanese Standard Time (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_Standard_Time), as kept by ships of the Kido Butai), with the attack on Kaneohe. A total of 353 Japanese planes in two waves reached Oahu. Slow, vulnerable torpedo bombers led the first wave, exploiting the first moments of surprise to attack the most important ships present (the battleships), while dive bombers attacked U.S. air bases (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_airbase) across Oahu, starting with Hickam Field (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hickam_Field), the largest, and Wheeler Field (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheeler_Field), the main U.S. Army Air Forces fighter base. The 171 planes in the second wave attacked the Army Air Forces' Bellows Field (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bellows_Field) near Kaneohe on the windward side of the island, and Ford Island (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Island). The only aerial opposition came from a handful of P-36 Hawks (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P-36_Hawk), P-40 Warhawks (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P-40_Warhawk), and some SBD Dauntless (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SBD_Dauntless) dive bombers from the carrier USS Yorktown. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Enterprise_%28CV-6%29)
The first attack wave of 183 planes was launched north of Oahu, led by Commander Mitsuo Fuchida (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitsuo_Fuchida). It included:
1st Group (targets: battleships and aircraft carriers)
49 Nakajima B5N (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nakajima_B5N) Kate bombers armed with 800 kg (1760 lb) armor piercing bombs (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armor_piercing_bomb), organized in four sections (1 failed to launch)
40 B5N bombers armed with Type 91 torpedoes (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Type_91_torpedo), also in four sections
2nd Group – (targets: Ford Island (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Island) and Wheeler Field (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheeler_Field))
51 Aichi D3A (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aichi_D3A) Val dive bombers armed with 550 lb (249 kg) general purpose bombs (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_purpose_bomb) (3 failed to launch)
3rd Group – (targets: aircraft at Ford Island, Hickam Field, Wheeler Field, Barber's Point, Kaneohe)
43 Mitsubishi A6M (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A6M_Zero) Zeke fighters for air control and strafing (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strafe)[76] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attack_on_Pearl_Harbor#cite_note-IJN-88) (2 failed to launch)
Six planes failed to launch due to technical difficulties.
Kaneohe Bay is a sheltered cove on the east coastline of Oahu, a beautiful series of sandy beaches and tall palms that catch the first rays of sunlight reaching westward across the Pacific Ocean. Today it is home to the Kaneohe Bay Marine Corps Air Station. In 1941 it housed a small Naval Air Station in support of three patrol squadrons, VP-11, VP-12 and VP-14. Each squadron had twelve patrol aircraft, most of them the newer PBY-5s.
For more than a month the men at Kaneohe Bay had been on a limited alert. The men of VP-14 had the duty assignment that December morning and had spent the night in their hangar, the newest of the three large hangars on the airfield. They had arisen with dawn on Sunday morning, launched three of their PBYs to conduct the routine daily submarine patrols, then rotated shifts to the chow line for breakfast. Three of VP-14's idle PBYs were anchored out in the bay; the remaining six were parked around the hangar in neat rows, along with the patrol aircraft of VP-11 and VP-12.
131216
Half of the duty section of VP-14 was lounging around the hangar or Barracks #2 smoking cigarettes and making small talk while they waited for the remainder of their comrades to return from chow for the 8 A.M. muster. The sound of approaching aircraft engines drew little attention. Kaneohe Bay was an AIR station, and aircraft were always coming and going. The men watched as the first flight flew over their heads moving west towards Pearl Harbor. "Probably just some early-bird Army aviators," most of them thought. Then came the sound of more aircraft, this time flying closer. The slow rumble of high-flying airplanes became the scream of low flying Japanese zeros divingon the airfield. An explosion, then another, interrupted the morning stillness. The blue morning sky was lit with the bright orange balls of fire. It was a few minutes before eight o'clock on a bright Sunday morning, the day of December 7, 1941.
Shoi Hatsuo Hidaka and Shoi Kiichi Oda could not believe their luck. Total surprise. They could see many American servicemen just looking up at the unfamiliar aircraft, not believing what they could see. Following on from the first attacks of the 3rd Group, they pressed home their advantage.
131217
Diving down they angled their attack along the parked row of PBY’s.
131218
A lone patrolling P40, low on fuel was intent on making the Japanese pilots pay. He had seen the first attacks going in.
131219
Hidaka was having more success than Oda. He just couldn’t seem to get his angle of fire correct. Now he could see the diving P40 and just had time to scream a warning to his wingman.
131220
Swinging left he just saw the P40 flash past with all guns blazing and Hidaka’s Zero falter in mid air, before heading towards an American anti-aircraft gun position and exploding into a million fragments as Hidaka impacted on the gun position.
131221131222
Oda angled his Zero to the right and kept on with his primary mission. The destruction of the enemy scout float-planes.
131223
The P40 pilot threw his aircraft into a turning loop, an Immlemann his ‘Pappy’ had told him of when he was a young pilot during WW1. He thundered round and headed back towards Oda’s Zero.
131224131225
Oda was intent on destroying as many PBY’s before the American returned. Reaching the end of the line he flipped the Zero over and headed back the way he had just flown. Dealing more destruction as he went.
131226
Oda could see PBY’s on fire; the special bullets all of the Zero’s were armed with seemed to be working. Specifically designed for this very purpose.
131227
Both Zero and P40, due to their approach speed had overshot each other. Oda was free to carry on with his destruction of the PBY’s.
131228
The P40 pilot had again turned his fighter around and was closing in on the Zero. As soon as he was in range he let rip and didn’t let go of the trigger. Soon the Zero burst into falme.
131229131230131231
Oda flipped the Zero round again and went head to head with the P40. This time bullets thudded through the Zero and Oda felt a hard punch in his chest. Looking down at his chest he knew he might not make it back to the carrier.
131232
Oda managed to keep the Zero in the air for one more pass down the line of PBY’s, until the flames made it impossible to keep the Zero in the air. So close to the ground Oda could not escape a fiery death as his Zero cartwheeled into a line of PBY’s.
131233
The Butchers Bill:
131234
4 PBY’s destroyed.
131235
1 PBY Badly damaged.
1 PBY No damage.
P40: 17 damage. Pilot RTB.
AA Gun: Destroyed.
131236
131237
Shoi Hatsuo Hidaka: SD/KIA
Shoi Kiichi Oda: SD/KIA (missing additional fire damage chits, apologies)
131207
The air portion of the attack on Pearl Harbor began at 7:48 a.m. Hawaiian Time (3:18 a.m. December 8 Japanese Standard Time (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_Standard_Time), as kept by ships of the Kido Butai), with the attack on Kaneohe. A total of 353 Japanese planes in two waves reached Oahu. Slow, vulnerable torpedo bombers led the first wave, exploiting the first moments of surprise to attack the most important ships present (the battleships), while dive bombers attacked U.S. air bases (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_airbase) across Oahu, starting with Hickam Field (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hickam_Field), the largest, and Wheeler Field (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheeler_Field), the main U.S. Army Air Forces fighter base. The 171 planes in the second wave attacked the Army Air Forces' Bellows Field (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bellows_Field) near Kaneohe on the windward side of the island, and Ford Island (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Island). The only aerial opposition came from a handful of P-36 Hawks (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P-36_Hawk), P-40 Warhawks (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P-40_Warhawk), and some SBD Dauntless (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SBD_Dauntless) dive bombers from the carrier USS Yorktown. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Enterprise_%28CV-6%29)
The first attack wave of 183 planes was launched north of Oahu, led by Commander Mitsuo Fuchida (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitsuo_Fuchida). It included:
1st Group (targets: battleships and aircraft carriers)
49 Nakajima B5N (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nakajima_B5N) Kate bombers armed with 800 kg (1760 lb) armor piercing bombs (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armor_piercing_bomb), organized in four sections (1 failed to launch)
40 B5N bombers armed with Type 91 torpedoes (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Type_91_torpedo), also in four sections
2nd Group – (targets: Ford Island (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Island) and Wheeler Field (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheeler_Field))
51 Aichi D3A (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aichi_D3A) Val dive bombers armed with 550 lb (249 kg) general purpose bombs (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_purpose_bomb) (3 failed to launch)
3rd Group – (targets: aircraft at Ford Island, Hickam Field, Wheeler Field, Barber's Point, Kaneohe)
43 Mitsubishi A6M (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A6M_Zero) Zeke fighters for air control and strafing (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strafe)[76] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attack_on_Pearl_Harbor#cite_note-IJN-88) (2 failed to launch)
Six planes failed to launch due to technical difficulties.
Kaneohe Bay is a sheltered cove on the east coastline of Oahu, a beautiful series of sandy beaches and tall palms that catch the first rays of sunlight reaching westward across the Pacific Ocean. Today it is home to the Kaneohe Bay Marine Corps Air Station. In 1941 it housed a small Naval Air Station in support of three patrol squadrons, VP-11, VP-12 and VP-14. Each squadron had twelve patrol aircraft, most of them the newer PBY-5s.
For more than a month the men at Kaneohe Bay had been on a limited alert. The men of VP-14 had the duty assignment that December morning and had spent the night in their hangar, the newest of the three large hangars on the airfield. They had arisen with dawn on Sunday morning, launched three of their PBYs to conduct the routine daily submarine patrols, then rotated shifts to the chow line for breakfast. Three of VP-14's idle PBYs were anchored out in the bay; the remaining six were parked around the hangar in neat rows, along with the patrol aircraft of VP-11 and VP-12.
131216
Half of the duty section of VP-14 was lounging around the hangar or Barracks #2 smoking cigarettes and making small talk while they waited for the remainder of their comrades to return from chow for the 8 A.M. muster. The sound of approaching aircraft engines drew little attention. Kaneohe Bay was an AIR station, and aircraft were always coming and going. The men watched as the first flight flew over their heads moving west towards Pearl Harbor. "Probably just some early-bird Army aviators," most of them thought. Then came the sound of more aircraft, this time flying closer. The slow rumble of high-flying airplanes became the scream of low flying Japanese zeros divingon the airfield. An explosion, then another, interrupted the morning stillness. The blue morning sky was lit with the bright orange balls of fire. It was a few minutes before eight o'clock on a bright Sunday morning, the day of December 7, 1941.
Shoi Hatsuo Hidaka and Shoi Kiichi Oda could not believe their luck. Total surprise. They could see many American servicemen just looking up at the unfamiliar aircraft, not believing what they could see. Following on from the first attacks of the 3rd Group, they pressed home their advantage.
131217
Diving down they angled their attack along the parked row of PBY’s.
131218
A lone patrolling P40, low on fuel was intent on making the Japanese pilots pay. He had seen the first attacks going in.
131219
Hidaka was having more success than Oda. He just couldn’t seem to get his angle of fire correct. Now he could see the diving P40 and just had time to scream a warning to his wingman.
131220
Swinging left he just saw the P40 flash past with all guns blazing and Hidaka’s Zero falter in mid air, before heading towards an American anti-aircraft gun position and exploding into a million fragments as Hidaka impacted on the gun position.
131221131222
Oda angled his Zero to the right and kept on with his primary mission. The destruction of the enemy scout float-planes.
131223
The P40 pilot threw his aircraft into a turning loop, an Immlemann his ‘Pappy’ had told him of when he was a young pilot during WW1. He thundered round and headed back towards Oda’s Zero.
131224131225
Oda was intent on destroying as many PBY’s before the American returned. Reaching the end of the line he flipped the Zero over and headed back the way he had just flown. Dealing more destruction as he went.
131226
Oda could see PBY’s on fire; the special bullets all of the Zero’s were armed with seemed to be working. Specifically designed for this very purpose.
131227
Both Zero and P40, due to their approach speed had overshot each other. Oda was free to carry on with his destruction of the PBY’s.
131228
The P40 pilot had again turned his fighter around and was closing in on the Zero. As soon as he was in range he let rip and didn’t let go of the trigger. Soon the Zero burst into falme.
131229131230131231
Oda flipped the Zero round again and went head to head with the P40. This time bullets thudded through the Zero and Oda felt a hard punch in his chest. Looking down at his chest he knew he might not make it back to the carrier.
131232
Oda managed to keep the Zero in the air for one more pass down the line of PBY’s, until the flames made it impossible to keep the Zero in the air. So close to the ground Oda could not escape a fiery death as his Zero cartwheeled into a line of PBY’s.
131233
The Butchers Bill:
131234
4 PBY’s destroyed.
131235
1 PBY Badly damaged.
1 PBY No damage.
P40: 17 damage. Pilot RTB.
AA Gun: Destroyed.
131236
131237
Shoi Hatsuo Hidaka: SD/KIA
Shoi Kiichi Oda: SD/KIA (missing additional fire damage chits, apologies)