World War II
At the time of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941, Pennsylvania was in drydock in the Pearl Harbor Navy Yard. She was one of the first ships in the harbor to open fire as enemy dive and torpedo bombers roared out of the high overcast. They did not succeed in repeated attempts to torpedo the caisson of the drydock, but Pennsylvania and the surrounding dock areas were severely strafed. The crew of one 5 inch (130 mm) gun mount was wiped out when a bomb struck the starboard side of her boat deck and exploded inside Casemate 9. Destroyers Cassin and Downes, just forward of Pennsylvania in the drydock, were seriously damaged by bomb hits. Pennsylvania was pockmarked by flying fragments. A part of a torpedo tube from Downes, about 1,000 lb (450 kg) in weight, was blown onto the forecastle of Pennsylvania. She had 15 men killed (including her executive officer), 14 missing in action, and 38 wounded.
On 20 December, Pennsylvania sailed for San Francisco, arriving on 29 December. She underwent repairs until 30 March 1942.
Read more about this topic: USS Pennsylvania (BB-38)
Famous quotes containing the words war ii, world and/or war:
“There’s no telling what might have happened to our defense budget if Saddam Hussein hadn’t invaded Kuwait that August and set everyone gearing up for World War II½. Can we count on Saddam Hussein to come along every year and resolve our defense-policy debates? Given the history of the Middle East, it’s possible.”
—P.J. (Patrick Jake)
“We used chamber-pots a good deal.... My mother ... loved to repeat: “When did the queen reign over China?” This whimsical and harmless scatological pun was my first introduction to the wonderful world of verbal transformations, and also a first perception that a joke need not be funny to give pleasure.”
—Angela Carter (1940–1992)
“There’s no telling what might have happened to our defense budget if Saddam Hussein hadn’t invaded Kuwait that August and set everyone gearing up for World War II½. Can we count on Saddam Hussein to come along every year and resolve our defense-policy debates? Given the history of the Middle East, it’s possible.”
—P.J. (Patrick Jake)