 Unmolested, these dive bombers came in and dropped their bombs right down the stacks of the Japanese carriers, and within five minutes, the Japanese fleet was gone. Not quite literally. One aircraft carrier was still afloat. But in those five minutes, the history of the Pacific was changed forever. That was the great battle of the Pacific. For 50 years, people on both sides had been anticipating and looking forward to, and it just went that quick.