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Character mistake: As Torrey's launch heads for his new flagship, a signalman calls to the quarterdeck that the admiral's party is arriving. However, the signalman gets his signals mixed, addressing his message to the signal bridge from the quarterdeck, instead of the other way round.

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Continuity mistake: After USS Cassidy joins Torrey's group, Mac is on the bridge conversing with another officer, and the "Swayback" is visible on the port quarter. A submarine contact is made at 020/2000 yards which would be even further to starboard, and the Cassidy prosecutes the contact. Then the "Swayback" gets hit with two torpedoes on the PORT side.

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Audio problem: As McQ is attempting to escape from the hoods by driving down the beach in a 4-door automatic Belvedere, you can hear manual transmission upshifts occurring.

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Continuity mistake: When Abel rams the sheriff's car, he is driving a 1966 Chevrolet. He leaves and ends up at the veterinary clinic, where the doctor injects him with a poison. During the following chase, Abel's car becomes a 1967 Chevrolet, then reverts back to the '66 Chevy.

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Factual error: General Luntz states that an upcoming raid would be the "first against Berlin". Actually the first US raid against Berlin was early in 1944, before the 332nd was involved in bomber escort duties.

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Factual error: When Lightning returns to base following the destruction of the train, the pilots watch his gun camera films. Gun cameras are trained forward of the aircraft, while some of the footage displayed was from behind the P-40.

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Plot hole: Commander Heath ignores the prime directive of naval aviators when he boards the T-33 for the flight to Washington D.C. and fails to pre-flight the aircraft.

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Character mistake: When Vallian prepares to leave the homestead, McKaskell asks him how his chest wound was. Vallian was shot low on the right side, just above the gun-belt, and McKaskell, who removed the bullet, was quite aware of the location.

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Factual error: As LTJG McConnell is standing to colors on the USS Cassidy, he gets a call from the radio room, informing him that they are picking up "plane to plane chatter in Japanese". Until the attack actually commenced, the Japanese maintained strict radio silence, and upon commencement the coded signals "To, To, To", and "Tora, Tora, Tora" were sent by Fuchida's radioman, neither of which would necessarily be interpreted as Japanese.

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Plot hole: As Torrey's task force seeks out the Japanese, the JL talker on the bridge informs the Captain that the starboard lookout reports a ship on the bow. Immediately everyone goes over to the port side to see the vessel, which appears (through the binoculars) to be about five miles distant. Poor lookout discipline.

goofyfoot

Factual error: At the end of the first semifinal, as Cheng's gang gather to congratulate him, the events are being recorded for posterity by a photographer standing about 6 feet away, who, unfortunately is using at least a 200mm lens. I'm not sure he could even get Cheng's left eye into focus.

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Factual error: In every photo or drawing I have seen of the Oklahoma or Arizona, their main guns had no flash suppressors as depicted. The main rifles were sealed with tampions in port, and those would be impossible to fit into the muzzles shown in the movie.

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Factual error: The B-25's used for the Doolittle raid were "B" models, yet a number of aircraft were shown equipped with 50 caliber guns in cheek blisters, a modification that did not occur until the "H" model came out later in the war.

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Factual error: In January, 1942, US National insignia deleted the red ball in the center of the star. The Doolittle raiders are depicted with the old insignia, and while this was accurate on the fuselage and wing bottom, official US Navy photographs show that at least some of the B-25's had the newer insignia on the top left wing.

goofyfoot

Factual error: As the Japanese fleet steams toward its launch point, there is a close up of the nose of a B5N1 Kate torpedo bomber with its distinctive two-bladed propeller. Trouble is, the Kates used against Pearl Harbor were B5N2's, with a two row radial and 3-bladed prop.

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