The Arizona and Missouri

[MisterCairo]

While you’re splitting hairs, the Brits were late to the party as well. Chinese people were dying at the hands of the Japanese (yes, the Axis as well) as early as 7 July, 1937.

It's "splitting hairs" to correctly point out that the Second World War started in September 1939? Please refer us to an historic text that sets the start of the Second World War in 1937 with the Japanese invasion of China. Why not include the Spanish Civil War or any other conflict of the mid to late 1930s?

As for the Brits being late to the party, the Brits, and for that matter, the Canadians, were fighting Japan in late 1941 while the United States were quietly sitting on the sidelines. The Canadian and British armies were fighting the Japanese at Hong Kong while the first wave was heading towards Pearl Harbour.

 

[Stearmen]

USS Utah

As we speak of the two famous battleships at Peril Harbour, lets remember the forgotten battleship, the USS Utah. She still rest on the other side of Ford island all but forgotten. There are still 54 min and one young girl forever intomb in her! Yes, one girl, Nancy Lynne Wagner. It seem that when she died earlier that year, she was cremated and her father Chief Yeoman Albert T.D. Wagner brought her ashes to the Utah with the intent of bearing her at sea, when the Utah was sunk, she was still on board, and no thought of recovering her remains were ever entertained! The Utah was serving as a very sophisticated radio control ship for bomb practice. Contrary to popular myth, she was not mistaken for an aircraft carrier, she had large metal structures on her deck known as Dog Houses. In fact, Lt. Matsumura Heita of the HIRYU had express orders to his air men not to attack the Utah. She may have been mistaken for the Pennsylvania, since she was in dry dock at the time. Utah may have been the first to be attacked that day, she took two torpedoes, and passably one dud. she quickly took on water and started to capsize. Finally when it was clear that she was going over the order was given, "All hands on deck and all engine room and fireroom, radio and dynamo watch to lay up on deck and release all prisoners." fallowed a short time later by, "Abandon Ship! Abandon Ship!" One of the last men to abandon her was the acting Captain. But the ordeal was not over as Japanese planes strafed the helpless survivors in the water. Chief Watertender Peter Tomich would receive the Medal of Honor for his actions that day, it was also the longest time between the medal being awarded, and next of kin receiving the medal! There were attempts to salvage her, but all failed, thus insuring her place at Pearl! The first photo is of her in all her glory, the second is as she looks today, and the third shows the USS TARAWA moored by her. Incidently, if you put the two ships side by side, they would be almost the same size, just a small fraction of the Utah is visible. This berthing of carriers has been going on since the Essex class carriers, and is leading to a rapid deterioration of the Utah, soon no part of her will be visible, only the slow bleeding of her fuel!

 

[Treetopflyer]

I didn’t realize

I was stationed at Pearl Harbor for two years and participated in the memorial service at the Arizona in 2001. That is one of the highlights of my Naval career. It most definitely is a very hollowed place. The strange thing is that I was stationed there when they filmed the movie "Pearl Harbor" and I was able to see the Zeros’ they used for filming flying low over the harbor at sunrise one Saturday morning, very eerie.
Looking at the picture of the Tarawa, I did not know that they moored ships up on that side of Ford Island, other than the small Army ships. It is a very tight maneuvering space for a small ship. I can’t even imagine trying to moore a ship that size into that berth.