July 4, 1943 – Seattle – 0500 hours

A celebration was planned for the afternoon, it was not to be. The peace of the morning was broken by the sound of approaching multi-engined aircraft with unsynchronized engines. In Australia they called these noisy aircraft washing machine Charlie. Twenty seven Japanese bombers came in from the sea, dropped their loads and flew back out to sea. There was no opposition. Not one gun opposed them, not one fighter raised to defend. One hundred eighty seven people were dead and several hundred others were injured. The property damage was not really that great but the emotional impact on the country was monumental. The bombers were land based. It was clear that they were from the north. They had flown only 800 miles, and had a greater effective range. Clearly the northern corner of the country was open to attack. This threat would have to be neutralized.

Over the next few days fighter planes and pilots were moved north, into the area, the Canadian and American civilian authorities linked together to pass information to each other and the military when planes were spotted. Over a dozen military radar stations were set up to provide better warning. Air raid drills were instituted in plants and schools. All of this was necessary but it took resources that would have otherwise gone to defeat Hitler. Clearly the Japanese had taken an action that would prolong the war.