US Navy Pacific Fleet 1941

US Navy Pacific Fleet 1941 by Mark Lardas is the first book to examine the battleship-led 1941 Pacific Fleet as it was intended to fight. Packed with illustrations, this study explains how the US Navy saw the approaching war unfolding.

When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, the Pacific Fleet was the most powerful in the US Navy. Although dominated by battleships, since the late 1930s it had been developing naval aviation and integrating it with its battleship-led doctrine.

This book is the first to explore how the Pacific Fleet was intended to fight, as well as how it had been training and preparing in the months leading up to December 7, 1941. Naval historian Mark Lardas explains that, contrary to modern assumptions, the fleet was not strictly committed to battleships but was hedging its bets by building up both its carrier and battleship strength. Most crucially, it had been constructing and refining a massive fleet train, enabling the Pacific Fleet to operate thousands of miles from home with ease. This foundation was essential for the Pacific Fleet to adapt rapidly to the new era of carrier-led naval warfare, first checking and then defeating the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN).

With artwork, photos, and diagrams, US Navy Pacific Fleet 1941 captures 1941 in the Pacific Fleet, marking the last time and place when battleship doctrine held sway. Pearl Harbor would shatter this and herald the start of the carrier era. Despite the blow falling heavily on the US Pacific Fleet, it and its successors would emerge more powerful than ever.