The Navy immediately insisted that there was no evidence of the presence of enemy planes, and [Secretary of the Navy], Frank Knox announced at a press conference on 25 February that the raid was just a false alarm. You may be looking for the fictional Battle of Los Angeles seen in the film. At the same conference he admitted that attacks were always possible and indicated that vital industries located along the coast ought to be moved inland. One of the more frightening nights in Los Angeles' history is re-enacted each year at The Fort MacArthur Museum in San Pedro. 3 Feb. 2019. Within hours of the end of the air raid, Secretary of the Navy Frank Knox held a press conference, saying the entire incident was a false alarm due to anxiety and "war nerves". As terrifying as the experience was for those on the archipelago, it’s not the first time an impending attack has turned out to be a false alarm. Some people saw [the war] as far way, in the Hawaiian Islands, but now it was real, right next door.” That meant people were more willing to support the military with small actions, like rationing food or selling war bonds. An editorial in the Long Beach Independent wrote, "There is a mysterious reticence about the whole affair and it appears that some form of censorship is trying to halt discussion on the matter." Some people were predicting the Japanese would try to hit Los Angeles, and soon. But in the immediate aftermath, the U.S. Navy and U.S. Army disagreed about what had actually happened, writes John Geoghegan in Operation Storm: Japan’s Top Secret Submarines and Their Plan to Change the Course of World War II. “The Great Los Angeles Air Raid of 1942” is a fundraiser event for the Fort MacArthur Museum that takes you back in time to a thrillingly faithful recreation of a 1942 big band dance party, interrupted by the reality of war — THE AIR RAID! In an ironic twist of fate, there were five civilian deaths caused by the incident. If the batteries were firing on real planes, some of them as low as 9,000 feet, as Secretary Stimson declares, why were they completely ineffective? One very interesting piece of testimony provided to Hewitt came from a man who had been continually ordered to “fire”, despite the fact that he couldn’t actually observe any target. Against this backdrop, the stage was set for the events that would unfold the following evening. Photo via Los Angeles Times (Feb. 26, 1942), Despite these tragedies, there was also joy as “blackout babies” were born during the LA Air Raid, including a “robust eight pounder,” William Dallas Nicholas. The Great Los Angeles Air Raid of 1942 in San Pedro, California, boasts an atmosphere that harkens back to the World War II era and displays vintage memorabilia and military artifacts from that time. ProQuest. Web. Palmer, Kyle.

“I was a radar operator at Esplanade on Redondo Beach. ProQuest. According to the LA Times' Feb. 26, 1942 issue, the Army's Western Defense Command chalked the whole thing up to "jittery nerves." However, the Secretary of the Navy at the time, Frank Knox, spoke at a press conference shortly after the two-day event and said it was a “false alarm.” Obviously, the media immediately had a field day and wondered what exactly was going on and whether there was a mystery to solve.

That evening a large number of flares and blinking lights were reported from the vicinity of defense plants.

A number of years ago, an episode of the California based public television program California’s Gold, hosted by veteran broadcaster Huel Howser, featured an episode dedicated to the alleged “air raid” that occurred in February 1942. Tons of conflicting proclamations were submitted with everyone seeing something different. Three other individuals unfortunately died of traffic accidents as the blackout was in effect. This year's "Great Los Angeles Air Raid" event took place Saturday, and video of the re-enactment is available above. ProQuest. There were no planes over Los Angeles last night; at least, that’s our understanding.” Knox went further to say that the “attack” was largely due to “jittery nerves.”. Thereafter the information center was flooded with reports of "enemy planes, " even though the mysterious object tracked in from sea seems to have vanished. CONTACT AND BOOK JOHN TODAY REFERENCES "The Battle of Los Angeles" Description: During the night of February 24th, 1942, several unidentified objects caused a panic in Southern California as thousands of residents of Greater Los Angeles looked skyward when they heard the thumping of artillery, the wailing of air raid sirens and saw searchlights sweeping the sky. President Roosevelt, upon being briefed about the supposed “incident”, was reportedly very irked by the notion that a full-scale response of this sort might have been triggered by nothing more than “war nerves” in the aftermath of the Pearl Harbor attack. The True Story of the ‘Free State of Jones’, The Meaning Behind Six Objects on Día de los Muertos Altars, Earth Will Die a Hot Horrible Death when the Sun Expands and Swallows Us, and Now We Know What That Looks Like, Behind the Scenes With the White House Residence's Long-Serving Staff, The Lab Saving the World From Snake Bites, How Hedges Became the Unofficial Emblem of Great Britain. Rethinking the Great Los Angeles Air Raid of 1942. “Almost every one of them said that’s where they got their first experience with battle conditions,” Nelson says. “The battle has pretty much been a footnote in history, for at least my lifetime,” Nelson says.

Even today, now 77 years later, what really took place during “The Great LA Air Raid” in the early hours of the morning of February 25, 1942 remains a mystery.