In the early hours of February 25, 1942, Los Angeles, California, became the scene of a dramatic and chaotic event known as the "Battle of Los Angeles" or the "Great Los Angeles Air Raid." Triggered by fears of a Japanese aerial attack following the Pearl Harbor bombing, U.S. Army anti-aircraft batteries unleashed a massive barrage into the night sky in response to unidentified objects. Despite the extensive firing, no enemy aircraft were ever confirmed to have been present, and the incident remains a notable example of wartime hysteria and misidentification.1
The Air Raid and Barrage
The event unfolded amidst heightened tensions, just days after a Japanese submarine shelled an oil facility near Santa Barbara. Around 2:00 AM, U.S. Army radar reportedly detected an unidentified object or objects approximately 120 miles off the coast of Los Angeles.2 Air-raid sirens sounded, and a city-wide blackout was ordered. At 3:06 AM, anti-aircraft batteries opened fire, and for over an hour, more than 1,400 rounds of ammunition were expended into the night sky. Searchlights swept the area, and civilians reported seeing enemy aircraft, falling bombs, and even Japanese paratroopers, though these reports were later found to be erroneous.3
Official Explanations and Aftermath
Despite the massive barrage, no enemy planes were shot down, and no bombs or aircraft damage were found by daylight. The incident resulted in five civilian deaths: three from traffic accidents caused by the chaos and blackout, and two from heart attacks.4 Property damage occurred from falling anti-aircraft shell fragments. Secretary of the Navy Frank Knox initially called the purported attack a "false alarm." Later analyses by the U.S. Office of Air Force History attributed the incident to a case of "war nerves" triggered by a lost weather balloon, exacerbated by stray flares and shell bursts being mistaken for enemy planes.5 While some ufologists later framed the barrage as an early, suppressed encounter with extraterrestrial craft, the official explanation points to a combination of anxiety and misinterpretation of atmospheric phenomena.6