BOMBING OF USS PANAY - USS Panay Sinking 2039

Document for Today, December 12th:
Panay (River Gunboat PG45). Port bow, underway, 08/30/1928

Four years before Pearl Harbor, the United States and Japan were involved in an incident that could have led to war between the two nations. On December 12, 1937, the American navy gunboat Panay was bombed and sunk by Japanese aircraft. A flat-bottomed craft built in Shanghai specifically for river duty, USS Panay served as part of the U.S. Navy�s Yangtze Patrol in the Asiatic Fleet, which was responsible for patrolling the Yangtze River to protect American lives and property.

Panay (River Gunboat PG45). Port bow, underway, 08/30/1928 (National Archives Identifier: 512989 ); Series: Naval History Photographs (Bureau of Ships), 1883 - 1941; Records of the Bureau of Ships, 1940 - 1966; Record Group 19; National Archives.

https://www.archives.gov/historical-docs/todays-doc/