Anime Aircraft Pr0n - A6M2 Reisen (Zero)

On this day in 1941, our nation was thrust into a world conflict by the Imperial Japanese Navy's attack on our forces at Pearl Harbor and Hickham Field, Territory of Hawaii. The Mitsubishi Zero escorted dive, torpedo, and level bombers to the targets, swept the skies of American fighters, and strafed ground targets themselves. Originally a technological mystery, a Zero recovered intact later gave up its secrets. The Japanese sacrificed pilot armor and self-sealing fuel tanks for incredible maneuveribility. Armed with this knowledge, American tactics changed and the Zero suffered attrition unsustainable by the Japanese aircraft industry and the pool of trained Jap pilots. There would be later marks of Zero and other aircraft comparable to America's best, but the learning curve of Navy and Marine aviators (and Army Air Corps pilots) rose faster than the depleted Japanese pilot pool could manage.