Posted on 04/19/2006 4:15:59 PM PDT by SandRat
WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio, April 19, 2006 Eight of the surviving 16 "Doolittle Tokyo Raiders" gathered at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force here yesterday for their 64th annual reunion and to remember those who have gone before them.
"We're gathered to remember a historic event that changed the hearts of the American people," Lloyd Bryant, a Dayton, Ohio, radio announcer and former U.S. Air Force officer, said at the memorial ceremony. "We are here to pay tribute to those brave men, whose courageous action gave Americans their first glimpse of victory during the darkest days of World War II." The Doolittle Raiders were a group of 80 volunteer airmen from the U.S. Army Air Forces who on April 18, 1942, flew 16 B-25 Mitchell airplanes from the deck of the USS Hornet on a daring mission to bomb Japan. Their name is derived from the man who led the air raid, Army Lt. Col. James H. "Jimmy" Doolittle. The raiders' objective was to bomb multiple Japanese cities and then land at an airstrip in China for refueling. Unfortunately, a Japanese patrol boat spotted the Hornet, forcing the Americans to launch the attack hundreds of miles before the intended launch point. After dropping their payloads, the raiders continued on toward China, but a combination of bad weather and low fuel forced the crewmembers to either bail out or crash land in a Japanese-occupied portion of China. One plane landed safely in Russia, where its crew was interned. "We were on empty and flew about 500 miles inside the coast of China before we ran out of fuel and had to bail out in Japanese-occupied territory," co-pilot retired Lt. Col. Bob Hite said. The Japanese captured Hite along with his crew. He was held as a prisoner of war until Japan surrendered in August 1945. The raid achieved little in terms of damage inflicted on Japan, but was a huge morale booster to the American people, coming just four months after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Navigator retired Lt. Col. Chase Nielson, who also was held as a prisoner of war, said he hoped the actions of the Doolittle Raiders would always serve as an inspiration to all Americans. "I learned a few lessons, especially how to appreciate mankind, our democracy and the beautiful wonderful world we live in," he said. "I hope others do too." Nielson said the greatest satisfaction he got from participating in the raid was the fact that he helped defend the ideals of the United States. "We are all honored that we had a part in protecting the freedoms and the democracy that we call the United States," Nielson said. "There isn't a better place in the world to live, believe me." The surviving members of the raid cite the leadership of Jimmy Doolittle as the biggest factor in enabling them to undertake their perilous mission. "We had a great leader in Jimmy Doolittle," Tom Griffin, who was a 25-year-old lieutenant at the time of the raid, said. "He was the kind of leader who made us believe we could do this job." "We all felt that Jimmy Doolittle was No. 1," Hite added. "He had it all -- intelligence, bravery and great leadership qualities." Also attending the reunion was Tung Sheng Liu, a Chinese citizen who at age 24 helped one of the Doolittle crews escape the clutches of the Japanese. Liu, who spoke some English at the time, acted as a translator between the raiders and other sympathetic Chinese citizens. After some intense planning and daring maneuvering, Liu and his cohorts delivered the crew safely to Chungking, a city in southwestern China that was not occupied by Japan. "It took us 10 days to travel a short distance, because it was occupied territory. Japanese units constantly patrolled," Liu said. "Then we traveled two more days by bus, eventually making it to Chunking." In 1946, Liu moved to Minneapolis to attend graduate school and was stunned two years later when he learned that the Doolittle reunion was scheduled to be held there. "I read this in the paper and went to join them," he said. "They welcomed me as an honorary raider. I've been coming to the reunion ever since." The bond among the Doolittle Raiders has remained tight over the years. "They're a great bunch of guys. We all know each other's children and grandchildren," Griffin said. "We're like a big family." "This is a pretty fine group of guys," Hite said. "I don't know anybody better." The first 10 Doolittle Raiders reunions were attended by the crewmembers only and, Griffin said, were somewhat raucous affairs. But when their wives began attending, things began to calm down a bit, he said. "From then on, the whole tenor of the reunions changed," Griffin said. "We calmed down and got to bed like civilized people. But the first 10 were some pretty wild reunions." Other Doolittle Raiders in attendance were Bill Bower, Ed Horton, Frank Kappeler, Dick Cole and David Thatcher. |
Related Sites:
DoD Web Special: The Doolittle Raid
Air Force Web Special: Doolittle Tokyo Raid
National Museum of the U.S. Air Force
Related Article:
Doolittle Raids: Beginning of End For Imperial Japan
A wreath commemorates the Doolittle Raiders who lost their lives in World War II. The Doolittle Raider reunion was held at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base April 18-19. Photo by William D. Moss
|
God bless those brave men
...and all of our servicemen, past and present.
Thanks, SR - amazing men! I did a whole paper on them. It is great to know that some of them are still with us.
One of those guys gave a talk at the elementary school I was attending eons ago, and that was my first exposure to the story.
I have no idea today which man it was. I seem to recall that he autographed a book in my father's possession, "30 Seconds Over Tokyo" which he probably still has, so it might have been Captain Lawson.
I'll ask next time I speak to him.
Such patriotism and bravery. Like none you will find in the ThugoRats of today -- devout anti-American COWARDS...that brave souls like this fight and die to protect. Such a crime upon reason.
As an FYI, David Thatcher is the last surviving crew member of the B-25 "Ruptured Duck", commanded by Captain Ted Lawson, (the author of "Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo" which the movie of the same name was based upon).
As I recall, Thatcher received the Silver Star and was commended for basically saving the rest of his crew after they crashed, as Thatcher was the only one to escape serious injury.
But each and every last one of them, American heroes never to be forgotten. God Bless Them.
bttt
These men are true heroes. One of my favorite movies is about this raid, "Thirty Seconds over Tokyo."
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0037366/
Thanks for this posting SandRat. I was honored in my life to meet one of the men that flew on that mission. He at that time was Captian Davey Jones. When I knew him he was A Two Star General and was the Commander of the Eastern Test Range, when I was at Patrick AFB Florida. What you need to understand is that it wasn't just me. General Jones rode a bicycle on the flight line and though the jet engine shop. If you had less than four stripes on you arm the General would stop and talk to us. The E-8's and E-9's would tell us not to talk with the General. We had to tell them that we didn't start it, he stopped and talked with us and once he talked with us he would stop and talk with us when he saw us again. He was a special person in my life and I was HONORED to be one of the guys he stopped and said Hi too.
Those guys were amazing. Good book - The Doolittle Raid by Carroll V. Glines. Toward the end, the story of Sgt. DeShazer in captivity being awoken by a voice telling him to pray for peace is incredible.
"He was held as a prisoner of war until Japan surrendered in August 1945."
Let it be known that all the Raiders (not executed) received life sentences & were to be held even after the war but were discovered & rescued by chance in the final days of the war.
The Doolittle Tokyo raid was one of those defining moments in military history and will remembered 1,000 years from now.
To me, all of the crew members that participated in the Doolittle Tokyo raid have become the definition of hero!
Bump
God bless these guys. I love every one of em.
A very respectful salute! Thank you, gentlemen all, for a wonderful job wonderfully well done. You lit a beacon of hope at a time of the greatest darkness and peril America has ever faced, and your grateful nation, and all who hold dear the values of civilization, will forever remember you and keep you enshrined in their hearts.
I recall reading the book, Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo when I was in grade school . The concept and execution of the raid was amazing.
My oldest daughter danced with him at a charity event in the Melbourne, Florida area back in the late 1960's. His wife Anita was running the event that would fund a foster home for girls that was to be built in Cocoa Beach area. My wife's sister, Jerri was on that charity committee as well and that is how we got to attend the event.
Since the wife and I actually remembered the Doolittle Raid from our youth, it was quite a pleasure for us to meet General Jones and see him dance with our daughter!!
Also, just in case you did not know this, he was shot down over North Africa in late 1942 and was a prisoner in a Stalag. He was also awarded a medal for his escape attempts. You have heard of the GREAT ESCAPE MOVIE, haven't you?
QUITE A MAN, QUITE A TEXAN!!
Good to see the father of a classmate of mine is still with us.
They sure as heck did!! I remember it well...
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.