[AU72]

It was thought to be, in the words of "Animal House" a weak and stupid gesture on our part". Put it was a strategic stroke that shook Japan's military to it's core. that the Home Islands were open to attack that early after Pearl Harbor was never considered possible and it forced a full re-allocation of valuable strategic resources it did not have.

I give Roosevelt credit for green-lighting what was realistically considered a suicide mission for the sake of homeland morale.

[yarddog]

I was surprised to read that the Japanese recovered most of their pilots despite them having to land in the sea.

Still all they lost were those pre war Navy pilots who were given the most extreme training of any of the world’s pilots.

[Retain Mike]

The raid certainly set the standard for what the Japanese would be up against.

[sasportas]

>it was a strategic stroke that shook Japan’s military to it’s core. that the Home Islands were open to attack that early after Pearl Harbor was never considered possible and it forced a full re-allocation of valuable strategic resources it did not have.

>>There is something else the raid forced, and often overlooked. The Japs now realizing how vulnerable they were from attacks from the sea, decided they had to complete what they failed to do at Pearl Harbor. They decided to implement Admiral Yamamoto’s plan - finish off the US fleet in a large confrontation at Midway...first, then to Pearl Harbor again to finish off what was left of the US fleet.

We all know about the US Navy’s great victory at Midway. In hindsight, we can see that the courageous Halsey-Dolittle raid, in presaging the Midway victory, was a major contributor to the turning the war around in the Pacific, and ultimately the winning of the war.