1942 Doolittle Raid Launch Footage

The Doolittle Raid, April 18, 1942, was the first air raid by the United States to strike the Japanese home island of Honshu during World War II. The mission was notable since it was the only time in U.S. Military history that United States Army Air Forces bombers (16 modified B-25B bombers) were launched from a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier on a combat mission. The raid demonstrated that the Japanese home islands were vulnerable to Allied air attack, and it provided an expedient means for U.S. retaliation for Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941. The bombers were carried by the USS Hornet (CV-8) from Alameda, California to their launch point in the Pacific. At a distance of about 650 miles from Japan, the task force encountered a Japanese picket boat, which radioed an attack warning to Japan. Although the boat was destroyed by gunfire from the cruiser USS Nashville, Lt. Col. Jimmy Doolittle and Hornet skipper Captain Marc Mitscher decided to launch the B-25s immediately ten hours earlier and 170 miles farther from Japan than planned. The footage shows some of the men rescued from the picket boat (and I believe the boats destruction), although the shot of the Japanese men is overexposed. Most of the rest of our film shows the men preparing the aircraft for launch and launching. They launched their aircraft between 8:30 and 9:19 in the morning. This reel doesn't contain any footage after the raid left the Hornet, however there are a couple of still shots with possible bomb damage and maybe a picture of a crashed B-25 in China, and some footage of at least one of the raiders receiving a medal in China. Immediately after the raid, Lt. Col. Doolittle told his crew that he believed that the loss of all 16 aircraft, coupled with the relatively minor damage that had been inflicted on their targets had rendered the attack a failure, and that he expected a court martial on his return to the United States. Instead, the raid bolstered American morale to such an extent that Doolittle was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Franklin Roosevelt. He was also promoted two grades to Brigadier General, skipping the rank of colonel. He went on to command the 12th Air Force in North Africa, the 15th Air Force in the Mediterranean, and the 8th Air Force in England during the next three years.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• Doolittle
• Raid
• B-25
• bomber
• USS
• Hornet

[magcharles1]

Very good, thanks!! A historical side note, the raiders did their secret training at Eglin AFB, Florida. The small town (name not mentioned here) next to the base was more than unfriendly to the raiders. As many of the town businesses displayed signs in their windows which read; "No dogs, n*gg*rs or airmen". After the raid the townsfolks realizing that many of the raiders had trained there and died and were tortured, had a change of heart and took down the signs.

[Silenc3rZ]

Some of them never came back. It took lots of courage to do so. Respect

[AllieCat356]

THATS AWESOME!!!!!!! At the end they show Doolittle attaching the friendship metals on to a bomb that those jap bastards gave us to show their honor of peace with us. They hit us with a sucker punch but we hit them back with the Doolittle outfit and two mushroom clouds. Great flick, GOD BLESS those on our Doolittle Outfit, Jimmy himself, and those on the USS HORNET. Brave Brave Men.

[carson0524]

I am related to doolittle somehow. He is my grandpa's great uncle. So he's my great,great,great uncle.

[vv55sst]

Where did you find this video?

[Dogmeat1950]

gas never got $4 were I lived.

you do know that there is a place in Montana that has more oil then all of Saudi Arabia right? lol

also 2/3 of all oil the U.S uses comes from North America

[happygocarts]

I used to think that too. Remember when gas was $4.00 a gallon. I could say that almost everyone i knew was saying" we should take that oil from iraq and use it here".

Its a mob mentality ya know.

[Dogmeat1950]

no. we wouldn't

[PBJESMH]

Awsome ty ty ty

[happygocarts]

I think if our gov't could convince us that every military action would benefit us by lowering the prices of goods we would probably take over the world!!