An incredible video has been released depicting black & white photographs that were taken during the attack on Pearl Harbor seamlessly blended with pictures of the same locations today – all to commemorate the 76th anniversary of the bombing.
On December 7, 1941, Japan launched more than 350 fighters, bombers, and torpedo planes against the U.S. naval base in Hawaii, plunging America into World War II.
The Japanese assault began around 8 a.m., resulting in the deaths of 2,403 Americans, numerous injuries, and the sinking of four battleships, and damage to many more.
Surprised US service members who normally would have slept in on that Sunday morning or enjoyed some recreation found themselves fighting for their lives.
The four minute film, produced by the Navy Public Affairs Support Element in Hawaii, combines the remarkable black & white scenes from the attack with color images of the present-day locations: very ordinary everyday locations suck as parking lots, buildings and fields that were once in the heart of battle.
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Sailors on Ford Island look on as the Mahan-class destroyer USS Shaw explodes
In the full version of the photograph, sailors stand amid wrecked watching as the USS Shaw explodes in the center background. The USS Nevada is also visible
The battleship USS California burns in the foreground as the battleship USS Arizona burns in the background after the attack on Pearl Harbor
The Mahan-class destroyer USS Shaw explodes in the background after the attack on Pearl Harbor
In the original picture, the American destroyer USS Shaw explodes after being hit during the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor
The view across the harbor now is calm, quiet and peaceful with the bombs having fallen more than three-quarters of a century ago
Firsthand accounts describe the moment the bombs were dropped, and the frightening aftermath. Some 2,400 sailors, Marines and soldiers were killed that day in just 90 minutes.
Navy fighter planes were blown up without the chance to take off and hangars set ablaze during the surprise assault.
Of the 402 American aircraft in Hawaii, 188 were destroyed and 159 damaged. Almost none were ready to take off to defend the base when the attack started, and just eight managed to get airborne during the attack.
The attack was part of a campaign of Pacific expansion undertaken by Imperial Japan that was intent on carving out an Asian empire to rival those of Europe.
On Thursday, survivors from the war gathered at Pearl Harbor to honor those who lost their lives on the island of Oahu and those who went on to serve during the war.
Of the tens of thousands of servicemen who survived, about 2,000 are still alive.
Defenders on Ford Island watch for planes during the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor
The complete picture shows marines and soldiers fire on raiding Japanese planes in the heat of the battle
The hills that once protected the soldiers are now lush, green and empty – but the stories they could tell…
A view of the historic Ford Island control tower from 1941. The tower was once used to guide airplanes at the airfield on the island. It is now an aviation library
Defenders on Ford Island watch for planes during the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor
Soldiers are seen waiting to defend themselves during the Japanese attack
Today the area is a concrete wasteland with little evidence of the ferocious air assault that took place here
The battleship USS Arizona burns during the attack, as viewed from Ford Island
Many men lost their lives in this small parcel of land. 76-years on, all is calm
Hangar 6 on Ford Island stands badly damaged after the attack
The concrete tarmac and apron still exist but the ruins from the war have long since been cleared away