Q&A ยท 31:25-31:58

What about Pearl Harbor's fuel tanks and oil storage?

The infrastructure targets belonged to the unlaunched third wave, which would have made the raid more crippling but less consistent with luring out the fleet.

Question

What about striking Pearl Harbor's fuel dumps and oil-storage facilities?

Short answer

Those were targets for the unlaunched third wave, whose extra damage would have deepened the raid's conflict with Japan's supposed attrition strategy.

Notes

The fuel dumps and oil-storage facilities belonged to the third wave of targets that the Japanese did not attack. Doing more damage differed from preserving enough American strength to attempt an angry advance. Striking the infrastructure would better serve a crippling ambush strategy, while further weakening the logic of an attritional lure.