Pilot Doolittle bombed Tokyo after Pearl Harbour
Following the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor and the US entry into World War II, Doolittle was promoted to
lieutenant colonel and transferred to Headquarters Army Air Force to aid in planning
an attack against the Japanese home islands.
Volunteering to lead the raid, Doolittle planned to fly sixteen B-25 Mitchell medium bombers off the deck the
aircraft carrier USS Hornet, bomb targets in Japan, then
fly through to bases in China. Approved by General Henry Arnold, Doolittle relentlessly
trained his volunteer crews in Florida before embarking aboard Hornet.
Sailing under a veil of secrecy, Hornet's
task force was spotted by Japanese picket on April 18, 1942. Though 170 miles
short of their intended launch point, Doolittle decided to immediately commence
the operation. Taking off, the raiders successfully hit their targets and
proceeded on to China where most were forced to bail out short of their
intended landing sites. Though the raid inflicted little material damage, it
provided a massive boost to Allied morale and forced the Japanese to redeploy
their forces to protect the home islands. For leading the strike, Doolittle
received the Congressional Medal of Honor.
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