San Francisco was awaiting dock work with engineering equipment broken down and her main-gun ammunition ashore. Smaller weapons had been removed for new 1.1-inch mounts that were not yet installed, while the .50-calibre machine guns were under overhaul and much of the crew was absent. Sailors who recognized the Japanese aircraft crossed to New Orleans and spent the attack passing ammunition to that ship's gunners. Confidence in Pearl Harbor's safety and an ordinary maintenance state had left a major warship almost disarmed when the surprise attack began. San Francisco's later Presidential Unit Citation and seventeen battle stars make that moment of vulnerability a sharp contrast with her wartime record.
Chapter · 57:22-1:01:39
San Francisco caught disarmed at Pearl Harbor
Overhaul left San Francisco with dismantled machinery, stored ammunition, removed guns, and only small arms when Japanese aircraft arrived.