With the anniversary of the worst attack on American soil past, NOVA has a “killer” documentary coming on PBS next month. The episode, Killer Subs in Pearl Harbor, documents the search for and location of the elusive fifth Japanese Navy midget sub that took part in the invasion of Pearl Harbor. NOVA was kind enough to provide me with an advance copy of the episode and has asked me to comment about it.

I’m a military history buff. If you listen to the You Served Radio Show, you know that my favorite guests have been the veterans from World War II. I can’t get enough of reading about and studying the conflict. This episode completely threw me for a loop as it will for viewers on January 5th, when it airs on PBS.

I never knew that the Japanese had commissioned so-called “midget subs” to assist with the attack on the island. My history books never mentioned that four of these subs had been spotted and destroyed prior to the air invasion. Scientists, explorers and veterans from the conflict explore the ocean around the harbor for clues about a supposed 5th sub that until recently was never discovered. However, the victory of this sub was broadcast loudly and its crew hailed as heroes in the Japanese press.

NOVA does a great job at detailing the history and uses various experts to discern whether or not the wreckage at the bottom of the ocean is in fact the infamous missing sub. The show explores some novel theories about what it is and how it got, all the while taking the audience on an easily comprehensible history tour of the opening acts of the war. The state of the art digital effects recreate that history with stunning visual effect. Fans of WWII do NOT want to miss this show.

We are currently working on an interview with one of the engineers, Parks Stephenson for the 7 Jan You Served show. You can read more about the episode and catch a preview HERE.