On the quiet Sunday morning of December 7, 1941 , as many Americans were preparing for church or enjoying rest with family, tragedy struck from the skies. At exactly 7:55 a.m., the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service launched a surprise attack on the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. This act of war would change the course of history forever. A Calculated Surprise Japan, seeking to dominate Asia and the Pacific, viewed the United States as the primary obstacle to its imperial ambitions. Negotiations between the two countries had been tense, and unbeknownst to the U.S., Japan had secretly planned a decisive blow to eliminate American power in the Pacific. The attack was meticulously planned. Two waves of Japanese aircraft — a total of 353 fighter planes, bombers, and torpedo planes — targeted battleships, airfields, and docked vessels. The Americans were completely unprepared. Radar operators had seen the planes approaching but dismissed them, believing they were American...