 The fleet departed Etorofu on 26 November and followed a course across the north-central Pacific to avoid commercial shipping lanes.Now the flagship of the Second Carrier Division, the ship embarked 21 Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighters, 18 Aichi D3A "Val" dive bombers, and 18 Nakajima B5N "Kate" torpedo bombers.From a position north of Oahu, "Hiryū" and the other five carriers launched two waves of aircraft on the morning of 7 December 1941 Hawaiian time.