Great post. Thanks for your perspective.
We are contemporaries. Built the same kit.
I am fortunate to have this B-25 based in my town, Georgetown,DE:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/B-25-Panchito/135332682696
It has taken part in many of the recent Doolittle Raider events. It flew overhead on Friday evening around suppertime on its way to the airport. You could hear the engines a ways off and they have such a distinctive sound that I knew what was coming.
Our town is the site of the annual Wings and Wheels event every October— a fly-in of vintage planes and a car show.
Lt. Col. Cole was the featured guest this year, and I had the privilege of being present while he talked about the raid and answered questions from the audience for almost an hour. Lt. Col Cole is the one giving the final toast.He was Jimmy Doolittle’s co-pilot.
I was watching a piece of history—one which would soon be gone forever.
Funny how those things make an impression on you as a kid...
You were incredibly fortunate to have had the opportunity to hear a firsthand account of that raid.
History, soon to be real history, indeed.