They didnt mean to it was the WONG place
To get rid of our Naval fleet.
Japan's fleet was led by Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto.
December 7, 1941
The Japanese wanted to cripple or destroy the American Pacific fleet. Their primary target was supposed to be aircraft carriers, but they were all out to sea during the attack.
The aim of the Pearl Harbor attack was to cripple the US Pacific Fleet so that the US would not have any opportunity to wage war against Japan. The US would then realise it could not defeat Japan and make peace without the need to fight a war. This strategy failed because the attack enraged the US, ensuring that it would fight Japan, and because it failed to completely cripple the US Pacific Fleet (in particular, none of the aircraft carriers were damaged, and all of them would be used against Japan).
They disabled the fleet in the Pacific and could attack the small islands without the worry about the navy.
They intercepted a mesage from Japan to its naval fleet.
The aim of the Pearl Harbor attack was to cripple the US Pacific Fleet so that the US would not have any opportunity to wage war against Japan. The US would then realise it could not defeat Japan and make peace without the need to fight a war. This strategy failed because the attack enraged the US, ensuring that it would fight Japan, and because it failed to completely cripple the US Pacific Fleet (in particular, none of the aircraft carriers were damaged, and all of them would be used against Japan).
The Japanese High Command.
Japan attacked Pearl Harbor to destroy the US Naval Fleet in the pacific. One of the main targets were the Aircraft Carrierswhich were not in Pearl Harbor at the time of the attack.
The plan was to destroy the American fleet in port, but the primary goal in the fleet were the aircraft carriers. The aircraft carriers were not in port then.
The attack on Pearl Harbor was intended as a preventive action in order to keep the U.S. Pacific Fleet from interfering with military actions the Empire of Japan was planning in Southeast Asia against overseas territories of the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and the United States.