On 31 August 1937 In a friendly fire incident Chinese warplanes accidentally attack killing Mess Steward S. Haskell and wounding 1 crewman and six passengers.
On 30 November 1937 the American tugboat Felting at the French concession at Shanghai is seized by the Japanese; the U.S. Flag is thrown overboard and a wooden plaque on the ships origin is torn off and used to strike a Chinese crewman; the tug was "returned" 1 December 1937.
On 12 December 1937 the attack on the United States gunboat by Japanese forces in China could be considered as the first hostile American action during World War II. Two U.S. Navy crewmen and two civilians were killed; 43 Navy crewmen and five civilians were wounded. Although the war was not officially declared in Europe until Germany invaded Poland on 1 September 1939, Japan had been involved in military actions against China since 1931.
On 26 January 1938, in what was known as the Allison incident, John M. Allison, at the time consul at the American embassy in Nanking, was struck in the face by a Japanese soldier. Even though the Japanese apologized formally on 30 January, this incident, together with the looting of American property in Nanking that took place at the same time, further strained relations which had already been damaged by the Panay incident less than two months earlier.
On 24 August 1938 in the Kweilin incident a CNAC DC-2 at Zhongshan China was strafed by Japanese fighters; American pilot Hugh Leslie Woods was one of only 3 survivors of 17 passengers and crew; the plane was later destroyed on 29 October 1940 as CNAC DC-2 number 39
On 3 September 1939 was the first British liner to be torpedoed and sunk after Britain declared war on Germany, by. Total casualties were 112, including 28 US citizens.
On 21 April 1940 the first American military death in the European Theatre occurred during the German invasion of Norway. Military attaché Captain Robert M. Losey was killed during a German bombardment of Dombås while assisting with the evacuation of U.S. embassy personnel and others to Sweden.
On 29 October 1940 CNAC DC-2 number 39 was attacked by Japanese Fighter planes at rural Changyi Airfield in Yunnan; American Pilot Walter "Foxie" Kent killed along with 1 crew and 7 passengers.
On 4 September 1941 during the "Greer Incident" the destroyer was fired upon with torpedoes by.
On 18 October 1941 was sunk by. Among the fatalities was Lt John Stanley Parker RNVR an American
Either the casualties inflicted on by on 17 October 1941 or the sinking of the by on 31 October 1941, might be considered the first American naval losses of World War II. The United States was neither officially involved in the war at the time nor did the incidents cause it to declare war.
Attacks by the U.S. military
The first American hostile action against Axis forces was on 10 April 1941, when the destroyer attacked a German U-boat: the U-52, which had just sunk the DutchfreighterSaleier near Iceland. Niblack was picking up survivors of the freighter when it detected U-52 preparing to attack. The Niblack attacked with depth charges and drove off the U-boat. There were no casualties on board Niblack or the U-boat. By coincidence, USS Niblack was later in the same convoy as, and picked up survivors from, the USS Reuben James when that ship was sunk. The first American hostile action against Axis forces that resulted in physical destruction was on 14 September 1941, when destroyed a German weather station in northeast Greenland. The action was based on an agreement with Danish Ambassador to the United StatesHenrik Kauffmann in April 1941 to patrol the Danish island. The first American-caused casualties occurred on 7 December 1941 when the attacked and sank a Japanese midget submarine near the entrance to Pearl Harbor prior to the commencement of the Japanese air attack upon Hawaiilater that day. As a result of the attack on Hawaii, America declared war on Japan on 8 December 1941. Germany and Italy declared war on the United States three days later. The first planned offensive action by the United States in World War II came in January 1942 when the aircraft carrier attacked Japanese bases in the Marshall Islands.
