Which U.S. battleship was the main target of the attack at Battleship Row?

The USS Arizona was the main target struck at Battleship Row during the Pearl Harbor attack. A Japanese armor-piercing bomb penetrated the battleship and detonated its forward ammunition magazines, causing a catastrophic explosion.

Arizona sank rapidly and suffered the greatest loss of life of any ship attacked at Pearl Harbor. A total of 1,177 officers and crewmen died aboard the ship, and the wreck remains on the harbor floor.

The USS Arizona Memorial was built over the sunken hull and dedicated in 1962. Visitors can see oil that continues to seep from the wreck, often called the ship’s “black tears.”

Arizona is sometimes confused with the USS Missouri because both battleships are associated with Pearl Harbor. Missouri was not present during the 1941 attack; it later hosted Japan’s surrender in Tokyo Bay in 1945.