75th anniversary of the Doolittle Raid

And to the thousands of Chinese killed by the Japanese in the aftermath.

A very strange post???

What about the thousands of Chinese killed by the Japanese before the raid.
Or the attack on Pearl Harbor which was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii Territory, on the morning of December 7, 1941

And to the thousands of Chinese killed by the Japanese in the aftermath.

Here’s to the 4 killed as prisoners by the Japanese, 3 of whom were executed… the other starved to death.

Wow, I never realised there was so many!

As an illustration of just how many Mitchells there are currently flight-worthy/active at this time, only including those which have actually flown within the last 1-3 years that I know of (they’re working to try and get at least 16 Mitchells to Oshkosh this summer):

1 Axis Nightmare
2 Barbie III
3 Betty’s Dream
4 Briefing Time
5 Buster
6 Champaign Gal
7 Devil Dog
8 Executive Sweet
9 Georgie’s Gal
10 God and Country
11 Grumpy
12 Guardian of Freedom
13 Heavenly Body
14 Hot Gen
15 In the Mood
16 Killer B
17 Lady Luck
18 Maid in the Shade
19 Miss Hap
20 Miss Mitchell
21 Old Glory
22 Pacific Princess
23 Panchito
24 Paper Doll
25 Photo Fanny
26 Red Bull
27 Russian To Get Ya
28 Sarinah
29 Semper Fi
30 Show Me
31 Special Delivery
32 Super Rabbit
33 Take-Off Time
34 Tondelayo
35 Wild Cargo
36 Yankee Warrior
37 Yellow Rose

Fantastic stuff!
We here in the UK have an example of this CLASSIC Warbird preserved……….She’s called ‘Bedsheet Bomber’.:apologetic::apologetic::apologetic::apologetic::apologetic::apologetic::apologetic:

Eleven Mitchells equates to a bit more than 1/5 of the airworthy population of the type.

That would have been impressive to see.

As a child, my best friends father was a former Doolittle Raider, so I’ve always been interested in the mission and the men who flew it.

I read on WIX that, of 17 examples that were to attend, a total of 11 Mitchells made it. What a sight that must have been!

B-25 Mitchell bombers sit parked on the runway next to the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, April 17, 2017. The 11 World War II-era aircraft landed at the museum to take part in its celebration of the 75th anniversary of the Doolittle Raid, in which 16 Army Air Corps bombers took off from the USS Hornet (CV 8) to deliver the first strike of the war on the Japanese homeland. (U.S. Air Force photo by R.J. Oriez)

A friend tipped me off to this tribute, also with Panchito:

http://www.thestate.com/news/local/article145064429.html

I read on WIX that, of 17 examples that were to attend, a total of 11 Mitchells made it. What a sight that must have been!

Great stuff.

I actually watched Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo this evening, which focused on the B-25 flown by Captain Ted Lawson and his crew, which was of course The Ruptured Duck.

Great film, if you haven’t already seen it.

The B-25 Mitchell bomber Miss Mitchell lands on a runway next to the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, April 17, 2017. The Miss Mitchell is one of the 11 World War II bombers taking part in the museum’s celebration of the 75th anniversary of the Doolittle Raid when Army Air Corps bombers took off from an aircraft carrier to deliver the first strike of the war on the Japanese homeland. (U.S. Air Force photo by R.J. Oriez/Released)

The B-25 Mitchell bomber Devil Dog lands on a runway next to the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, April 17, 2017. The Devil Dog, out of Georgetown, Texas, is one of the 11 World War II bombers taking part in the museum’s celebration of the 75th anniversary of the Doolittle Raid when Army Air Corps bombers took off from an aircraft carrier to deliver the first strike of the war on the Japanese homeland. (U.S. Air Force photo by R.J. Oriez/Released)

The B-25 Mitchell bomber Betty’s Dream lands on a runway next to the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, April 17, 2017. The Betty’s Dream, out of Houston, Texas, is one of the 11 World War II bombers taking part in the museum’s celebration of the 75th anniversary of the Doolittle Raid when Army Air Corps bombers took off from an aircraft carrier to deliver the first strike of the war on the Japanese homeland. (U.S. Air Force photo by R.J. Oriez/Released)

The B-25 Mitchell bomber Panchito lands on a runway next to the National Museum of the United States Air Force at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, April 17, 2017. The Panchito, out of Georgetown, Del., is one of 11 World War II bombers taking part in the museum’s celebration of the 75th anniversary of the Doolittle Raid, when Army Air Corps bombers took off from an aircraft carrier to deliver a retaliatory strike on the Japanese homeland during World War II. (U.S. Air Force photo by R.J. Oriez)

Becky Thatcher, daughter of the late Doolittle Raider Staff Sgt. David Thatcher, and U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. William Hatten from 28th Maintenance Squadron from Ellsworth Air Force Base, S.D., Ruptured Duck dedicated crew chief, unveil the newest rendition of the Ruptured Duck artwork during a ceremony for the new Ruptured Duck artwork, Apr. 17, 2017 at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. The original artwork featured a cross-eyed duck, wearing a leather helmet, staring out over crossed crutches. (U.S. Air Force photo by Wesley Farnsworth / Released)