Tanaka felt a profound satisfaction. All the months of training to deploy special torpedoes in these shallow waters had paid off.
After dropping his torpedo and clearing the row of burning American battleships at an altitude of less than 100 feet, Tanaka’s gunner reported that their torpedo exploded amidships on the dreadnaught, along with massive secondary explosions. Their attack had destroyed the Oklahoma’s bridge.
If the next wave achieved the same level of success, the American fleet would be shattered with one possible exception. Tanaka had seen no carriers in the harbor. Admiral Nagumo and Commander Fuchida would deal with those ships later. Tanaka doubted that American carriers could operate effectively against the great Japanese Imperial Fleet when their escorts were sitting at
