Posted on 09/05/2015 3:50:34 PM PDT by jazusamo
On Monday, one of the last two surviving members of the WWII “Doolitte Raiders” will celebrate his 100th birthday.
As one of the original Doolittle Raiders, retired Lt. Col. Richard Coledefied all the odds in what was considered a suicide mission to bomb Japan in 1942.
Mr. Cole was co-pilot for Lt. Col. Jimmy Doolittle, who led 16 B-25 bombers on the mission that is considered an event that changed the nation’s morale following the devastating attack on Pearl harbor.
He was one of 80 fighters who volunteered for the dangerous, top-secret mission. The Raiders planned to take off from the deck of the U.S.S. Hornet, bomb targets in Japan and land in China. But the Japanese Navy detected the Hornet and the takeoff point was moved 200 miles, leaving the airmen with a very slim chance of making it all the way back to China after bombing the targets in Japan.
The Doolittle Raid marked the first time that bombers would attempt to take off from a carrier. The planes had less than 250 feet of runway, and as the first plane to take off, Mr. Cole and Mr. Doolittle’s plane had the least amount of runway to get up to speed for takeoff.
In an interview with The Washington Times, Mr. Cole attributed his survival and his long life to sheer luck.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtontimes.com ...
Happy Birthday!
BUMP!
Happy birthday Sir and thank you for your service.
Happy birthday with a fist pump.
Happy birthday and conservative Americans thank you for your service!
Thank you, Lt. Col. Richard Cole, and all who served.
Thank you LTC Cole! The stuff of legends!
Happy Birthday, Sir with a hand salute and hand shake.
I remember they had a pilot with an original B-25 on one of the history type shows. He attempted to take off in the same distance but could not do it.
He said the reason was partly due to the speed of the carrier and also he said they had higher octane gas. He still said he was really impressed with them after trying to do it and failing.
Happy Birthday, Sir!
As a kid in the early 50’s I remember watching a show about the raid and the training for it, it may have been “Victory at Sea” but not sure.
They practiced at an Air Force base somewhere and had stripes painted across the runway, they must have allowed a little extra runway length for the speed of the carrier pointed into the wind.
Yes they trained at Field 2 out in the middle of nowhere at Eglin AFB.
A great Warrior and hero, SALUTE!
I got to sign a birthday card for him at the National Museum of the US Air Force.
Great, wish I could have also.
He’s a gentleman and patriot and went above and beyond as all the Doolittle Raiders did.
God bless them all.
The other surviving Doolittle Raider is David Thatcher.
Endless gratitude and long lives to them both.
Watch “Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo.”
A REAL American who made REAL history. Not like the cheap crap “history” Obama and his ‘RATS are always making.
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