7 interesting facts about the attack on Pearl Harbor

By Michael Gryboski, Mainline Church Editor Thursday, December 07, 2023

The abandoned third wave

Japanese Admiral Chuichi Nagumo (1887-1944), who oversaw the attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941. | Public Domain

The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor came with two waves of air strikes, which resulted in the destruction of four battleships, more than 100 American planes, and 2,403 lives.

Admiral Chuichi Nagumo, who commanded the overall Japanese attack, was encouraged by officers to launch a third airstrike on additional targets, but ultimately rejected the request, citing concerns like being discovered by other American forces.

“A third wave could have hit the vulnerable fuel tank farms and repair facilities of the U.S. Pacific Fleet. Had those been put out of action, then the U.S. Navy would have had a much harder time recovering from the powerful blow dealt it on December 7,” explained a 2020 piece for The National Interest.

“Admiral Chester Nimitz, commander of the Pacific fleet throughout most of World War II, claimed that doing so would have delayed an American counteroffensive by an entire year, and prolonged the war by two years.”