How soon after Pearl Harbor did the Japanese bomb the Australian city of Darwin?
A. The Darwin air raids took place in February of 1942, and the Australians were caught just as flat-footed as the Americans had been two months earlier at Pearl Harbor. The Japanese unleashed more firepower against Darwin than they had in Hawaii, and destroyed ships and planes belonging to both Australia and the United States. After the Darwin attack, many feared that the Japanese were on the verge of an invasion, for which Australia was woefully unprepared. The Australian military was mostly deployed overseas in early 1942, serving with British forces in Europe or North Africa. The Australian government quickly scrambled to get its forces back home, and fortunately, by early 1943, the threat of Japanese invasion had passed. Q. Were the mission children actually stuck on an island in Darwin’s harbor when the Japanese attached? A. No, that part’s exaggerated. But there’s a kernel of truth to the story. One of the first Australians to spot the incoming Japanese planes was a priest, stat
