for display only
Big Blue Interactive The Corner Forum  
Back to the Corner

Archived Thread

NFT: Today's the 75th anniversary of the Doolittle Raid

njm : 4/18/2017 11:40 am
A pin prick that resonated throughout the world done by a bunch of guys with steel cajones and a great commander.
Those guys had big ones  
section125 : 4/18/2017 11:45 am : link
for certain.
Taking off from a carrier (without catapult) with a bomber! 1st plane had about 400 ft of deck, Yikes!.
.  
x meadowlander : 4/18/2017 11:47 am : link
Jimmy Doolittle  
Earl the goat : 4/18/2017 11:47 am : link
HERO. Along with all the other raiders
RE: Those guys had big ones  
njm : 4/18/2017 11:49 am : link
In comment 13432485 section125 said:
Quote:
for certain.
Taking off from a carrier (without catapult) with a bomber! 1st plane had about 400 ft of deck, Yikes!.


And the first one off was Doolittle.
An amazing accomplishment  
Steve L : 4/18/2017 12:03 pm : link
and gave the Allies a glimmer of hope at such a dark time.
RE: Those guys had big ones  
Matt in SGS : 4/18/2017 12:04 pm : link
In comment 13432485 section125 said:
Quote:
for certain.
Taking off from a carrier (without catapult) with a bomber! 1st plane had about 400 ft of deck, Yikes!.


Not just the take off, but there was no going back to the carrier. They had to land in China and hope for the best.
RE: RE: Those guys had big ones  
Steve L : 4/18/2017 12:07 pm : link
In comment 13432521 Matt in SGS said:
Quote:
In comment 13432485 section125 said:


Quote:


for certain.
Taking off from a carrier (without catapult) with a bomber! 1st plane had about 400 ft of deck, Yikes!.



Not just the take off, but there was no going back to the carrier. They had to land in China and hope for the best.


Was that always the plan? I know they had to take off farther from Japan as planned because they were sighted. Was it always the plan to fly to China or was that the result of knowing they wouldn't have enough fuel due to the early launch?
Jimmy Doolittle was a major dude - not just cajones of steel and great  
Del Shofner : 4/18/2017 12:09 pm : link
flying ability, but a lot of brainpower -

"In July 1923, after serving as a test pilot and aeronautical engineer at McCook Field, Doolittle entered the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In March 1924, he conducted aircraft acceleration tests at McCook Field, which became the basis of his master's thesis and led to his second Distinguished Flying Cross. He received his M.S. in Aeronautics from MIT in June 1924. Because the Army had given him two years to get his degree and he had done it in just one, he immediately started working on his Sc.D. in Aeronautics, which he received in June 1925. His doctorate in aeronautical engineering was the first ever issued in the United States."
RE: RE: RE: Those guys had big ones  
njm : 4/18/2017 12:21 pm : link
In comment 13432525 Steve L said:
Quote:


Was that always the plan? I know they had to take off farther from Japan as planned because they were sighted. Was it always the plan to fly to China or was that the result of knowing they wouldn't have enough fuel due to the early launch?


Yes, that was always the plan. The deck of a carrier was too short for a B-25 to land. Taking off early meant there was less of a chance to make the fields in China they were supposed to go to. IIRC, none of them made it to the fields.
The Doolittle Raid was a lot more than a pin prick.  
Red Dog : 4/18/2017 1:27 pm : link
It was a very public slap in the face to the Japanese militarists who had guaranteed the Emperor and the rest of Japan that they were immune to attack, resulting an immense loss of face for Tojo and his minions.

It pushed them into the operations that led to the Battle of the Coral Sea and the Battle of Midway, the two actions that gutted the Kido Butai (the 6-carrier striking force that had attacked Pearl Harbor) and broke the back of the Japanese navy, stripping the initiative from the Empire and putting them on the defensive for the rest of the war.
Richard Cole  
prh : 4/18/2017 1:41 pm : link
Last surviving member of that raid.

Red Dog  
njm : 4/18/2017 1:55 pm : link
"Pin prick" - The amount of damage done

"Resonated throughout the world" - Loss of face and the resultant actions at Coral Sea nd Midway

But maybe you were just being a curmudgeon about it.
RE: Red Dog  
MadPlaid : 4/18/2017 2:00 pm : link
In comment 13432761 njm said:
Quote:
"Pin prick" - The amount of damage done

"Resonated throughout the world" - Loss of face and the resultant actions at Coral Sea nd Midway

But maybe you were just being a curmudgeon about it.

Ha. Exactly
All those guys  
OC2.0 : 4/18/2017 5:48 pm : link
Willingly went. Massive stones indeed.
Back to the Corner