Anti-aircraft batteries fire over Los Angeles at unidentified objects
February 24, 1942 – February 25, 1942 · Los Angeles, California · Sighting · Secondary sources only
Two days after the Japanese submarine I-17 shelled the Ellwood oil field near Santa Barbara, coastal radar picked up an unidentified target early on 25 February 1942. The air-raid warning sounded at 2:25 am, and anti-aircraft batteries fired more than 1,400 rounds before the all-clear at 7:21 am. No bombs fell, no enemy aircraft were found, and five people died indirectly in blackout car crashes and from heart attacks.
Why it matters (3/5)
Early, widely cited mass-sighting episode; predates the 1947 saucer era.
Caveats
Navy Secretary Frank Knox called it a false alarm caused by 'jittery nerves', while War Secretary Henry Stimson said up to 15 aircraft had flown over. Historians think a stray weather balloon set off the radar. UFO retellings rely on a retouched newspaper photograph, which the Smithsonian article does not discuss.
Video and images
- Los Angeles Times page, 26 Feb 1942 (scan) (Image, Wikimedia Commons)
Sources
- The Great Los Angeles Air Raid Terrified Citizens, Even Though No Bombs Were Dropped (Smithsonian Magazine), context