The attack on Pearl Harbor occurred in just two hours

The facts of Pearl Harbor indicate how quick the attack was. The initial wave of the Japanese aircraft's attack commenced at 7:55 a.m. HST on Sunday. From North Hawaii, the Japanese attacked and poured down fire in all directions. Hundreds of Japanese aircraft bombarded buildings, runways, and ships. Two waves of 395 aircraft were launched roughly 45 minutes apart. The sky was covered in dive bombers, fighters, torpedo bombers, and high-altitude bombers that dropped their lethal payloads across the island of Oahu. The two aircraft waves caused significant damage to their intended target, which was Battleship Row. By 9:45 am HST, the second wave of Japanese aircraft had ended and the mini-submarines had driven back to their carrier ships.

To destroy the communications and operational facilities that were not hit by the first and second waves, the Japanese leaders argued about whether or not to launch the third wave. After much consideration, the Japanese decided to stick with their strategy of prioritizing a narrow win over preserving naval power. They didn't want the attack to result in any significant losses. As they got virtually no damage in the first wave, they worried they could sacrifice more aircraft. Furthermore, it was only in the second wave that the Americans could launch a counterattack.