Three Months after the United States was plunged into WW-II with the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the nation was on edge. From

every theater the news was disheartening, and

the citizens along the West Coast were particu-

larly aware of their perceived vulnerability.

At 7:05 PM on the evening of Feb. 23, 1942, the

Japanese submarine I-17 surfaced off the coast

of Santa Barbara, Calif, and for 20 minutes the

crew fired numerous shells from the 5.5-inch

deck gun. The target was the Ellwood Oil Field.

The shelling inflicted minimal damage to instal-

lations along the shoreline and among a few oil

wells, but the primary targets, gasoline storage

facilities, went unscathed.

As a result of the shelling, military personnel

and civilian volunteers who scanned the hori-

zon from the water’s edge and watched the skies

day and night were placed on high alert. The

tension was palpable. Phantom sightings of

Japanese warplanes, rumors of impending en-

emy air raids, and even speculation that hostile

troops were preparing to land on the beaches of

southern Calif were continual.

In the predawn hours of Feb. 25, the sky

above Los Angeles erupted with anti-aircraft

shells. The so-called “Battle of Los Angeles”

was on. Apparently, the 37th Coast Artillery

Brigade had swung into action with the re-

port of an object sighted above the city. Eye-

witness accounts vary as to exactly what was

seen, and the descriptions range from a bell-

shaped to an oblong or round object that

measured anywhere from 16 to 80 feet and

traveling as rapidly as 200 miles per hour. It

is most likely that the mysterious object was a

balloon, first seen in the vicinity of Culver

City, Calif, and reported by civilian, military,

and law enforcement observers.

A cease-fire order was issued just minutes after

the shooting began, but difficulties in commu-

nication and the excitement of the moment re-

sulted in some witnesses claiming that the guns

chattered from 2:15 AM until 4 AM, expending

1,400 shells. Officially, the 14th Air Interceptor

Command stated that no fighter planes took to

the air in pursuit of the object or any Japanese

aircraft that might be aloft. However, many in-

dividuals clearly remembered seeing fighters in

the air-at least five and as many as 25 of them.

Radar operators in the area reported the pres-

ence of an object but plotted its location as 120

miles west of the city and headed south, in the

direction of San Diego.

The all clear sounded at 7:21 that morning, but

in the confusion several buildings and homes

were damaged by shell fragments and debris

resulting from the anti-aircraft fire. Two people

suffered heart attacks apparently brought on by

anxiety, and three were killed in a smattering of

auto accidents.

After some semblance of order was restored,

Secretary of the Navy, Frank Knox, met the

press and explained the events away, attribut-

ing the incident to a serious case of “war

nerves.” The Battle of Los Angeles received

widespread media coverage, and the Los Ange-

les Times published a photo in its Feb. 26, 1942,

edition that was purported to show the airborne

object illuminated by searchlights as shells

burst around it. After Secretary Knox made his

statement, the newspaper alleged that some

sort of cover-up was being perpetrated. Editors

of the Times thought so much of the story that

they ran it again on Oct. 29, 1945.

Some have asserted that the newspaper refused

to allow the truth to get in the way of a good story. A 2011 article, again published in the Los Angeles Times, flatly states that the original negatives of the photo in question were located in the Dept. of Special Collections at UCLA and subjected to thorough analysis. Researchers concluded the photo that ran in the newspaper in Oct. 1942 had been retouched. Partly truth and partly fiction, the Battle of Los Angeles remains a prime example of both “war nerves” and vigilance. How would the citizenry have reacted if an object had been sighted and no action had been taken? Chances are that the Los Angeles Times would have had a sensational story either way.

Article provided by Colonel Thomas Dix