How did the Japanese come so unexpectedly in Pearl Harbor?

Answer 1

Japan launched a suprise assault on pearle harbor on dec 7th i believe. they bombed the smalll island which was at the time was home dock for many of Americas navel fleet. the bombing was unexpected an led to many ships of Americas fleet to be sunk killing many sailers. this act by japan is what brought USA into WW2.

best i can do from what i remember of history class ;)

Answer 2

Actually, American Naval Intelligence had by then broken most of the Japanese Naval code, and the U.S. had broken the Japanese diplomatic code. So we knew an attack was coming, but weren't sure exactly where or when. It was initially thought that an attack on U.S. interests would occur in the Phillipines, and it was thought that an attack on Pearl Harbor might happen, but the date suspected was actually a week earlier than it happened.

When the diplomatic transmission that was sent to the Japanese Embassy (in several parts), it was quickly decoded by the State Department. When the final part was transmitted, it added the instructions to the Japanese Ambassador to destroy all codebooks and ciphers. When decoded, it was obvious that we were going to be attacked, but again the location was unsure.

The Japanese Task Force that sailed to Pearl Harbor had several strategies to approach Hawaii essentially undetected:

1. They sailed north of common shipping lanes, avoiding any ship contact.

2. They maintained radio silence (although that has been disputed) until the attack got underway.

Adding to that, the military commanders in Hawaii, although alerted by Washington to an imminent attack by Japan on U.S. interests in the Pacific, did not receive the communication until after the attack was underway. A memo was written by Army Chief of Staff George C. Marshall to be sent by fastest possible means - however, due to radio transmission problems, the memo was sent instead as a non-priority telegram.

The attack formation of planes was even detected on a newly installed radar site - however, being a new technology, the signal was blown off and mistaken for a flight of B-17 bombers that were flying in that morning from California.

In the end, it wasn't any one single thing that allowed the Japanese to achieve complete and total surprise in their attack at Pearl. It was good planning and strategy on their part, and a lot of errors all around on the part of the government and the military on the U.S. side.

If you've never seen the movie or read the book (which obviously you haven't), read or watch Tora! Tora! Tora!. The book and movie are a precise chronological account of the events leading up to the attack, the attack itself, and the immediate aftermath. It's one of the most concise documentary works on the subject.

The title is the code word sent from attack Flight Leader Mitsuo Fuchida to Admiral Nagumo (commanding the attack force) and then to Admiral Yamamoto (commander of the Japanese Navy) indicating to them that they had achieved complete and total tactical surprise in the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Answer 3

The Americans knew of the Japanese plan to attack them, due to decoders. The problem was that the Americans didn't know when or where the attack was suppose to happen. The attack happened well after the Americans received the news that the Japanese were going to attack, so they were caught off guard. No one could really predict it was going to be Pearl Harbor.

Answer 4

The bombing of Pearl Harbor was a complete surprise! We didn't even see it coming!!