Pearl Harbor: An Historical Archive (Full Frame)

These programs vividly tell the true story of the rise of Japanese military air power leading up to the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941. It details the attack on the U.S. military base in Hawaii and plots the significant events of World War II, that involved the Japanese air fleet. In the years leading up to the World War, Japan had built up a formidable fighting force. Japanese aircraft designers and manufacturers achieved significant success with planes such as the Aichi D3A dive bomber, known as "Val", the Nakajima B5N torpedo-bomber, allocated the Allied code name "Kate" and the Mitsubishi A6M, the fighter that became famous as the "Zero," without a doubt the best fighter aircraft in the Pacific through to late 1943. It was these three aircraft that made up the 340 plus strong carrier-borne attacking force that swept down on Pearl Harbor on the morning of December 7th, 1941. The first wave arrived just before 8 a.m. targeting the ma. airfields, destroying almost 400 American combat aircraft, rendering the island virtually defenseless and paving the way for the second wave that attacked the US Pacific fleet, moored in the harbor, with impunity. More than 2,000 servicemen were left dead or wounded. Japanese forces simultaneously launched a massive offensive throughout southeast Asia and the Pacific - targeting, amongst other places, Hong Kong, Guam, Midway, Wake Island and the Philippines. The vast expanse of the Pacific made air power more important than in other theatres of war, particularly due to the perfection of the aircraft carrier - battles were to be fought in the air by fleets that might never be in visual contact, fleets that could be hundreds of miles apart. The battles of the Coral Sea and of the Midway in May and June of 1942 were early, but important, confrontations between carrier-borne air forces. "The Battle Of Midway" proved to be the turning point in the war in favor of the Allies. Though Japanese forces continued to score significant victories, this fierce aerial battle saw the initiative pass to the Allies. These programs follow the events as they unfold throughout the area, culminating when the Japanese High Command, in desperation, decides to resort to suicide missions to avert defeat. The Kamikaze - "Divine Wind" - Squadrons' first strike was against U.S. naval forces just off the Philippines in October, 1944 and the attacks continued through to 1945 when, in May, they sank 17 U.S. ships off Okinawa, and it was also in these waters that the U.S. Carrier Franklin was severely damaged and almost sank after a direct hit - this is "the ultimate fight between defenders that want to live and pilots that want to die!".