What If a Modern Aircraft Carrier Fought at Pearl Harbor? | USS Gerald R. Ford vs 1941 Attack - video Dailymotion

What If

What if the 1941 Pearl Harbor attack wasn’t met by battleships—but by a modern U.S. aircraft carrier? In this episode of Two Brain Cells, the USS Gerald R. Ford, the most advanced carrier ever built, faces Japan’s surprise strike head-on.  Equipped with F-35C stealth fighters, Aegis radar, and missile defenses, the Ford turns a one-sided attack into a futuristic showdown. Watch as Japanese Zeros and torpedo bombers clash with supersonic jets and precision-guided weapons. #WhatIfWar #PearlHarbor #USS GeraldRFord #WWII #USNavy #AlternateHistory #ModernWarfare #F35C #NavalHistory #MilitaryTechnology #WarSimulation #JapaneseNavy #DefenseTech #HistoryChannel #BattleSimulation

Transcript

00:00December 7th, 1941. Six Japanese carriers launch hundreds of planes to attack Pearl Harbor.

00:08Soldiers jump from burning warships, fighter planes explode before they get off the tarmac.

00:13It's one of the bloodiest attacks in U.S. history, and nobody saw it coming.

00:17But let's change one thing. Anchored off Fort Island is something no one understands.

00:22A 100,000-ton nuclear-powered supercarrier from 2017.

00:28The USS Gerald R. Ford dropped into a battle it was never meant to fight.

00:34So what happens when the most advanced carrier on Earth is unleashed during one of history's most infamous attacks?

00:40Can it turn the tides of war, or is it just one carrier against six?

00:45First, let's look at exactly what we just dropped into 1941.

00:49The Gerald R. Ford spans nearly 1,100 feet, or three-and-a-half football fields,

00:55is powered by two nuclear reactors that could run for 20 years without refueling,

01:00weighs 100,000 tons, or 200 million pounds, and moves 35 miles, or 56 kilometers per hour.

01:08It's got a dual-band radar system that can track hundreds of targets simultaneously from over 250 miles away,

01:14as well as 75 on-board aircraft including F-A-18 Super Hornets that fly at Mach 1.8,

01:20F-35C Lightning II Stealth Fighters, Invisible to 1941 Radar,

01:25EA-18G Growlers that can fry enemy electronics,

01:29and E-2D Hawkeye planes with 350 miles of radar coverage.

01:33The ship itself has RIM-162 Sea Sparrow missiles that cruise at Mach 4,

01:39RIM-116 rolling airframe missiles for anything that gets close,

01:42and three Phalanx CIWS systems that fire 4,500 rounds per minute.

01:49But Admiral Chuichi Nagumo's strike force is no joke either.

01:53So let's see what we're up against.

01:54In total, there are six fleet carriers.

01:57Akagi, Kaga, Soryu, Hairu, Shikaku, and Zuokaku.

02:02The apex predators of 1941 naval warfare whose airwings pack 353 aircraft flown by the best pilots in the world.

02:11Among these aircraft are the fast and agile Mitsubishi A6M Zeroes,

02:16Aichi D-3A dive bombers, and Nakajima P-5N torpedo bombers,

02:22carrying especially modified shallow-water torpedoes designed specifically for Pearl Harbor.

02:27These pilots have trained for months under Commander Mutsuo Fuchida.

02:31They built scale models of Pearl Harbor and practiced until they could fly the attack route blindfolded.

02:37The Japanese plan is to send in two waves.

02:40The first to hit airfields and battleships simultaneously to prevent American response,

02:44and the second to take out whatever's left.

02:46It's devastating, and historically, it works perfectly.

02:495.30 a.m.

02:51Japanese pilots get their final briefings 230 miles north of Oahu.

02:55When the Gerald R. Ford's radar operators notice something interesting,

03:00blips on their screens appear to be moving directly towards them at 180 knots.

03:04The Ford's Combat Information Center lights up, and within seconds,

03:08the ship's computers identify all 183 aircraft in the first wave.

03:12The radar tracks their altitude, speed, heading, and even estimates their fuel state.

03:16The carrier's captain doesn't hesitate, and general quarters sound throughout the ship ordering pilots to their aircraft.

03:22Within minutes, electromagnetic catapults begin launching the first fighters to respond.

03:27By 6 a.m., a squadron of Super Hornets is airborne, climbing rapidly to 40,000 feet.

03:32Below them, Japanese pilots in open cockpits are still 150 miles from Pearl Harbor,

03:37completely unaware they're being stalked.

03:40The first AMRAAM missile launches at 6.45 a.m.

03:43From the Japanese perspective, petty officer Takeshi Maida is checking his fuel gauge

03:49when the plane next to him disintegrates before his eyes.

03:51There was no warning, and still no enemy in sight.

03:54Panic ripples through the formation as pilots search for an enemy that's attacking from beyond visual range.

04:01Some dive for the deck while others climb desperately.

04:04The tight attack formation that took months to perfect dissolves into chaos in seconds.

04:08The first attackers are the Super Hornets, which engage from 30 miles away as their radar-guided missiles

04:15make the pilot's job to fire and forget.

04:17Commander Fuchida tries to restore order over the radio when he notices something is wrong.

04:22Several of his planes are indeed missing, but even the ones still in the air aren't responding to his call.

04:28EA-18G growlers have arrived, their EW rendering every Japanese radio useless.

04:34The coordinated Japanese team is now deaf and alone on an empty horizon hunted by a predator they have yet to see.

04:42The first wave loses 60 aircraft before Pearl Harbor enters view, but the Japanese press on to finish their mission.

04:48As the pilots approach Pearl Harbor, they meet the Ford's second line of defense.

04:52F-35s see Lightning IIs circling them at 15,000 feet.

04:56The Japanese pilots finally get to see who they are fighting,

04:58But the F-35s engage with infrared missiles that lock onto engine heat, and the outcome is the same.

05:04More Zeros fall from the sky, leaving trails of thick smoke in their wake.

05:09While the fight rages above, torpedo bombers drop to wave height in a desperate attempt to make their attack run.

05:14At this point, the Ford's Phalanx CIWS system activate,

05:19firing thousands of tungsten projectiles that shred any unauthorized aircraft that enter within a three-mile radius of the carrier.

05:26By 8 a.m., when the attack should be reaching its crescendo, battleship Rowe sits untouched.

05:31A handful of Japanese planes barely make it through and release their bombs haphazardly.

05:35Most hit water, but the few that find targets face alert American anti-aircraft crews,

05:40who have had over an hour since the Gerald entered the base to prepare for the attack.

05:45Radar still jammed, the Japanese carriers have no idea what's happening,

05:48so their only option is to assume they're still on schedule and send out the second wave.

05:52170 aircraft heading directly for a nest of Super Hornets with missiles ready waiting at 35,000 feet.

05:58At 8.40 a.m., Lieutenant Commander Shigekazu Shimazaki leads the second wave south.

06:04But by this time, the Ford has already launched everything it needs.

06:07The entire fleet is tracked on radar while the Growler has already jammed their radios.

06:11F-35s prowl at medium altitude while Super Hornets set up a killing box.

06:16The massacre only intensifies as the Japanese formation enters Pearl Harbor's airspace.

06:21Now they face not just jets, but the Ford's close-in defenses,

06:25as well as every alerted naval AA battery on Oahu.

06:29The sky becomes a web of tracer fire and exploding shells that decimate the attackers.

06:34By 9.45 a.m., the second wave has lost over 140 aircraft.

06:38The few survivors scatter across the Pacific, most running out of fuel before finding their carriers.

06:43Shimazaki himself dies when a phalanx system turns his torpedo bomber into confetti a thousand yards from Battleship Row.

06:50But the Ford isn't done.

06:51As Japanese aircraft flee north, the carrier launches a strike package.

06:5530 Super Hornets armed with harpoon anti-ship missiles, laser-guided bombs,

07:00and coordinates to the Japanese fleet's last known position.

07:03The Japanese air fleet, the Kido Butai, has no more air support.

07:07Every fighter is either in the water or running on fumes.

07:10Lookouts spot the incoming jets, but their anti-aircraft guns are designed for planes flying 300 miles per hour,

07:16not 1,200.

07:18All they can do is watch.

07:19Akagi takes three harpoon missiles to its center and splits in half.

07:23Akaga's aviation fuel detonates after a direct hit from a 2,000-pound laser-guided bomb.

07:29Within 20 minutes, four Japanese carriers are burning and sinking.

07:32The remaining two flee west at flank speed,

07:35as their captains desperately radio reports about jets that fly faster than sound and missiles that guide themselves.

07:40But growlers are still in the air, and the only people receiving their messages are the ones standing next to them.

07:47When the smoke clears, the Battle of Pearl Harbor has become Japan's worst naval defeat.

07:53They lose over 300 aircraft, four fleet carriers, and their best pilots,

07:58while American casualties number in the dozens and the Pacific fleet is ready for war.

08:03Or what do you think would happen?

08:05And if you're curious about what would happen if a Navy SEAL fought in the Coliseum,

08:08check out the video on the screen now.

08:10Thanks for watching.

What If a Modern Aircraft Carrier Fought at Pearl Harbor? | USS Gerald R. Ford vs 1941 Attack

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