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Doolittle Raid

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Doolittle Raid

The Doolittle Raid, also known as Doolittle's Raid, as well as the Tokyo Raid, was an air raid on 18 April 1942 by the United States on the Japanese capital Tokyo and other places on Honshu during World War II. It was the first American air operation to strike the Japanese archipelago. Although the raid caused comparatively minor damage, it demonstrated that the Japanese mainland was vulnerable to American air attacks. It served as an initial retaliation for the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 and provided an important boost to American morale. The raid was named after Lieutenant Colonel James Doolittle, who planned and led the attack. It was one of six American carrier raids against Japan and Japanese-held territories conducted in the first half of 1942. Under the final plan, 16 B-25B Mitchell medium bombers, each with a crew of five, were launched from the US Navy aircraft carrier USS Hornet, in the Pacific Ocean. There were no fighter escorts. After bombing the military and industrial targets, the crews were to continue westward to land in China. On the ground, the raid killed around 50 people and injured 400. Damage to Japanese military and industrial targets was minimal, but the raid had major psychological effects. In the United States, it raised morale. In Japan, it raised fear and doubt about the ability of military leaders to defend the home islands, but the bombing and strafing of civilians created a desire for retribution—this was exploited for propaganda purposes. The raid also pushed forward Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto's plans to attack Midway Island in the Central Pacific—an attack that turned into a decisive defeat of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) by the US Navy in the Battle of Midway. The consequences of the Doolittle Raid were most severely felt in China: in reprisal for the raid, the Japanese launched the Zhejiang-Jiangxi campaign, killing 250,000 civilians and 70,000 soldiers. Of the 16 crews involved, 14 returned to the United States or reached the safety of American forces, though one man was killed while bailing out. Eight men were captured by Japanese forces in eastern China (the other two crew members having drowned in the sea), and three of them were later executed. All but one of the 16 B-25s were destroyed in crashes, while one of the planes landed at Vladivostok in the Soviet Union. Because the Soviet Union was not officially at war with Japan, it was required, under international law, to intern the crew for the duration of the war. The crew's B-25 was also confiscated. However, within a year, the crew was secretly allowed to leave the Soviet Union, under the guise of an escape—they returned to the United States or to American units elsewhere by way of Allied-occupied Iran and North Africa. Doolittle initially believed that he would be court-martialed for missing his primary targets. Instead, he received the Medal of Honor and was promoted two ranks to brigadier general.

Infobox

Date
18 April 1942; 83 years ago (1942-04-18)
Location
Greater Tokyo Area and other Japanese cities
Result
Minimal damage to Japanese targets Major propaganda and psychological boost to Allies Japanese retaliatory attacks in China

Tables

· Participating aircraft
Whiskey Pete
Whiskey Pete
AAF serial number
40-2270
Nickname
Whiskey Pete
Sqdn
95th BS
Target
Tokyo
Pilot
1st Lt. Robert M. Gray
Disposition
crashed SE Quzhou, China
The Green Hornet
The Green Hornet
AAF serial number
40-2298
Nickname
The Green Hornet
Sqdn
95th BS
Target
Tokyo
Pilot
1st Lt. Dean E. Hallmark
Disposition
ditched at sea Wenzhou, China
The Ruptured Duck
The Ruptured Duck
AAF serial number
40-2261
Nickname
The Ruptured Duck
Sqdn
95th BS
Target
Tokyo
Pilot
1st Lt. Ted W. Lawson
Disposition
ditched at sea Changshu, China
Whirling Dervish
Whirling Dervish
AAF serial number
40-2303
Nickname
Whirling Dervish
Sqdn
34th BS
Target
Tokyo
Pilot
1st Lt. Harold F. Watson
Disposition
crashed S Nanchang, China
Hari Kari-er
Hari Kari-er
AAF serial number
40-2249
Nickname
Hari Kari-er
Sqdn
89th RS
Target
Yokohama
Pilot
Capt. C. Ross Greening
Disposition
crashed NE Quzhou, China
Fickle Finger of Fate
Fickle Finger of Fate
AAF serial number
40-2278
Nickname
Fickle Finger of Fate
Sqdn
37th BS
Target
Yokohama
Pilot
1st Lt. William M. Bower
Disposition
crashed NE Quzhou, China
The Avenger
The Avenger
AAF serial number
40-2247
Nickname
The Avenger
Sqdn
37th BS
Target
Yokosuka
Pilot
1st Lt. Edgar E. McElroy
Disposition
crashed N Nanchang, China
TNT
TNT
AAF serial number
40-2267
Nickname
TNT
Sqdn
89th RS
Target
Kobe
Pilot
1st Lt. Donald G. Smith
Disposition
ditched at sea Changshu, China
Bat Out of Hell
Bat Out of Hell
AAF serial number
40-2268
Nickname
Bat Out of Hell
Sqdn
34th BS
Target
Nagoya
Pilot
1st Lt. William G. Farrow
Disposition
crashed S Ningbo, China
AAF serial number
Nickname
Sqdn
Bomber crew image
Target
Pilot
Disposition
40-2344
Tokyo
Lt. Col. James H. Doolittle
crashed N Quzhou, China
40-2292
37th BS
Tokyo
1st Lt. Travis Hoover
crashed Ningbo, China
40-2270
Whiskey Pete
95th BS
Tokyo
1st Lt. Robert M. Gray
crashed SE Quzhou, China
40-2282
95th BS
Tokyo
1st Lt. Everett W. Holstrom
crashed SE Shangrao, China
40-2283
95th BS
Tokyo
Capt. David M. Jones
crashed SW Quzhou, China
40-2298
The Green Hornet
95th BS
Tokyo
1st Lt. Dean E. Hallmark
ditched at sea Wenzhou, China
40-2261
The Ruptured Duck
95th BS
Tokyo
1st Lt. Ted W. Lawson
ditched at sea Changshu, China
40-2242
95th BS
Tokyo
Capt. Edward J. York
interned Primorsky Krai, USSR
40-2303
Whirling Dervish
34th BS
Tokyo
1st Lt. Harold F. Watson
crashed S Nanchang, China
40-2250
89th RS
Tokyo
1st Lt. Richard O. Joyce
crashed NE Quzhou, China
40-2249
Hari Kari-er
89th RS
Yokohama
Capt. C. Ross Greening
crashed NE Quzhou, China
40-2278
Fickle Finger of Fate
37th BS
Yokohama
1st Lt. William M. Bower
crashed NE Quzhou, China
40-2247
The Avenger
37th BS
Yokosuka
1st Lt. Edgar E. McElroy
crashed N Nanchang, China
40-2297
89th RS
Nagoya
Maj. John A. Hilger
crashed SE Shangrao, China
40-2267
TNT
89th RS
Kobe
1st Lt. Donald G. Smith
ditched at sea Changshu, China
40-2268
Bat Out of Hell
34th BS
Nagoya
1st Lt. William G. Farrow
crashed S Ningbo, China

References

  1. The first bombing mission by B-25s preceded the Doolittle Raid by only 12 days. On 6 April 1942, six Mitchells bombed Ga
  2. 1st Lt. Richard Joyce was to have flown this aircraft back to the mainland with Navy Lieut. Miller as his copilot. Inste
  3. York was born Edward Joseph Cichowski and was known as "Ski". He legally changed his name to York in early 1942 before t
  4. Doolittle took along all 22 flight crews, both to provide spare flight personnel and as an additional security measure.
  5. The order to Nashville did not go out until 07:52. Heavy seas made hitting the picket boat difficult even with rapid fir
  6. Doolittle, first off, was 610 nautical miles (1,130 km; 702 mi) from Tokyo at launch, while Farrow, last off, was 600 na
  7. The carburetors of the B-25s had been carefully adjusted and bench-marked at Eglin Field for maximum fuel efficiency in
  8. Doolittle's after-action report stated that some B-25s were heard overflying the bases, but because the Chinese had not
  9. 27 of the 28 flew B-25 combat missions with the 7th and 341st Bomb Groups. Three died on 3 June 1942 when their B-25s co
  10. Jones, pilot of plane 5, flew missions in both the CBI and the Mediterranean, and was one of the four POWs.
  11. The diaries are in the Hoover Institute of Stanford University.
  12. The Japanese, through a small amount of intercepted radio traffic between Halsey and Mitscher, were aware that an Americ
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