num_pages: 436
description: Sunday December 7 1941 dawned clear and bright over the Pacific...But for the Dauntless dive-bomber crews of the USS Enterprise returning to their home base on Oahu it was a morning from hell. Flying directly into the Japanese ambush at Pearl Harbor they lost a third of their squadron and witnessed the heart of Americas Navy broken and smoldering on the oil-slicked waters below.The next six months from Pearl Harbor to the Battle of Midway  a dark time during which the Japanese scored victory after victory  this small band of aviators saw almost constant deployment intense carrier combat and fearsome casualties. Many were killed by enemy Zero fighters antiaircraft fire or deadly crash landings in the Pacific while others were captured and spent years in POW camps. Yet the Enterprises Dauntless crews would be the first to strike an offensive blow against Japanese installations in the Marshall Islands would be the first to sink a Japanese warship and would shepherd the Doolittle Raiders bombing of Tokyo.Not until Midway though would Dauntless crews get the chance to settle the score. In June 1942 Japan mobilized the best of its Navy to draw out the smaller American carrier fleet for a final showdown designed to destroy the U.S. Navy once and for all. What they didnt anticipate was the gutsy dive-bombing pilots and gunners whose courage and skill would change the course of World War II.Drawing on dozens of new interviews and oral histories author Stephen L. Moore brings to life inspiring stories of individual sacrifice and bravery - and the sweeping saga of one of Americas greatest triumphs.
language: English
title: Pacific Payback
publisher: Penguin Group