The Most Daring Mission of WWII - The Doolittle Raid on Tokyo 

I had the extreme honor of meeting Dick Cole, co-pilot of the lead plane of the Doolittle raid when he was 101 years old. He still had one hell of a firm handshake.

Excellent video. I would recommend the 1944 movie Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo. Spencer Tracy, Van Johnson and a tremendous supporting cast. It is based on the book by Ted Lawson who was one of the pilots. It documents the training, the mission and the struggle these men endured to return home,

Hope you guys enjoy! Historical notes - 1) The bombers were likely a little more spread out than pictured in my recreation of the raid, likely miles apart due to target locations. 2) I am limited in the skins I have to use, so some of the insignias in the later part of the video are not the ones that would have actually been on the B-25s in 1942. Thanks :) grab some TJ3 fanwear here! tj3-gaming-merch.creator-spring.com/

This raid led to the battle of Midway, June 4th 1942, which really should be a national holiday in our country.

These men were incredibly brave knowing it was probably a suicide mission. Just amazing.

One of the most significant raids of the Pacific front.

I have met over 30 of the Raiders and widows. A friend found out what hotel they were staying at, before their yearly reunion. We were able to meet many and get dozens of signatures on art work and in our books. I have also met many of the Raiders in different venues where I was the only one talking with them, for hours. It is incredible that so many people do not know of them or what heros they are. I was fortunate enough to actually see Gen. Doolittle back in ‘86. I was 24 and knew his place in history. The Legend himself. I have met Carroll Glines, who was the official historian of The Doolittle Raiders. He wrote one of the definitive accounts of the raid. A few corrections...as you can see by the video of the planes launching, This is them taking off on the actual raid. The sea is very rough and had spray coming over the deck of the Hornet. Doolittle lifted off and flew a quick circle, flew parallel with the Hornet to check his compass, then headed to Tokyo. As you stated, to launch all the aircraft, took about an hour. Because of the fuel issue and being forced to launch so early, all the crews, were told to head directly to their assigned targets, not to loiter or form up. They did not form up in groups. It was a long line of B25's to Japan. They were spread out over a 50 mile front, to give the appearance of having more planes. Tokyo was not the only target, as told by the wartime video. There were 5 total, Tokyo, Yokohama, Kobe, Nagoya, and Osaka. The planes were initially equipped with the Norden bombsight but since it was a top secret device and they bombed at low altitude, a cheap replacement was designed by one of the pilots, Ross Greening, i have met his widow, Dot. The widows of the Raiders were invited to the yearly reunions of the Raiders. It was daylight when they hit their targets but nighttime in a terrible storm when they crossed the China Sea. Doolittle had his crew bail out over land at night. Ted Lawson's plane and another ditched at night but his leg was injured and amputated later. Ted wrote...30 Seconds Over Tokyo. I have met his widow Ellen. This is the most important operation of the war. It forced the attack on Midway and that was the turning point in the Pacific. Afterwards, Japan was on the defensive with no more victories. Except for The Battle of Savo Island.

Oddly, the pilot and copilot of the aircraft that landed in the Soviet Union were both fluent in Russian.

After the Doolittle raid Jimmy Doolittle would serve as the commander of 8th Air Force in the European Theater of WWII.

This was a subtle way of telling the Japanese military a preview of things to come.

As always, a truly superb telling of an important historical event! Nitpicking begins: The photograph of "Lt Col Doolittle" was actually Major General Doolittle from later in the war. An interesting side note worthy of mention is that Doolittle was one of a very few soldiers in American history who was allowed to skip a rank and was promoted to Brigadier General a day after the raid, skipping the rank of Full Colonel altogether.

The Doolittle raid confirmed to the aggresive Japanese Empire that the US was coming for them at home. They awoke a sleeping giant.

RIP William J. Dieter (1912-1942) Donald E. Fitzmaurice (1919-1942) Leland D. Faktor (1921-1942) and The 50 Imperial Japanese civilians who were killed in the Doolittle Raid

I flew with Jimmy Doolittle in the raid......with my IL2 flight sim.😁

Most definatly one of the most amazing missions, and heroic acts of bravery in the history of war. Amazing men, and TRUE HEROS. Real heros, not fake wannabe heros most people think today.

Around 1980 we were visiting the Air Force Museum in Dayton Ohio. It was a hot day and wed been looking at some planes outside. We walked in to the museum through an open door at the back of a big hanger. It was set up for a dinner with many tables for 8 or 10 with white linens and sparkling table settings. There was a stage and podium flanked by two B-25 Mitchells. A young Airman pointed out that the area was closed to the public as there was a banquet there. I apologized for the intrusion and he assured us it was ok showed us to the door leading to the museum. As we, myself, my wife and our son and daughter, were walking out the corridor we saw a large group of elderly couples walking toward us. They all smiled and nodded, a few even stopped to talk and spoke to our kids who were 8 and 6. After they had passed i looked back and over tge doorway was a large sign that said, "Welcome Doolittle Raiders".

Outstanding! Tears of honor and joy fall from my eyes but originate from my heart and soul!

This video was absolutely brilliant man. I love the recreations you do, they’re awesome at painting the picture ! Keep up the great work brother, your channels gonna keep blowin up, you deserve all the good things coming your way my guy glad to be here and look forward to all your work to come !

The new B-21 stealth bomber of the USAF is called the Raider named in honor after the Doolittle Tokyo Raiders.👍. Great video 👍🎥. I'm retired USAF.🪖

I enjoyed your telling of the story. My dad was on the USS NASHVILLE at that time.

Love the content man, definitely something I don’t see often on here, very unique. Keep up the good work!

I would have been truly an honor to have been in the company of any of these men. A time in our nation when bravery and honor were admired, respected and valued.

Wonderful review of the raid. Great job.

You did a great job. I look forward to another .

You did a great job.

I don't understand why this channel doesn't have at least a million subscribers.

Well done, this is very detailed. I learned things about the raid that I didn’t know before. Keep it up. You now have a new subscriber.

Yeah definitely enjoyed this ! Very informative 👍

That was pretty darn cool. Thanks man.

Very good video and your diction is excellent, I understand almost everything 😉 (english is not my mother tong). Thanks for all from France.

Excellent video! Just heard about the Doolittle Raid yesterday and wanted to learn about it. After several attempts to find a video that it explained it well, I found yours! Thank you!

Enjoyed your video and I gave it a Thumbs Up

A marvelous documentary on the amazing Doolittle Raid on Tokyo. My father was a bombardier in Europe. His first mission was on D-Day and his 24th mission was at the Battle of the Bulge on 12/24/1944. His plane was shot down that day; only 3 of the crew survived. I would love to see a documentary on what each position on the B-17 did. When I learned where the bombardier sat I was totally flabbergasted!! This documentary showed a lot of views I had never seen. Thanks

Superb doc. Thank you

Excellent reporting. Theses men set an example for thousands and thousands of fliers. Salute!

Very well done ☺️

Wonderful post. Thank you.

Love this new series. Having seen many, many coverages of this raid; this is so much more engaging. One thing I've thought about from time to time is, were I there, I'd want to be one of the last in the pack. I'd want the entire deck as opposed to, say, half that the front planes had. Added in Edit: Sit at the feet of any of our heroes that still live, especially those from WWII, we are losing hundreds every day. There are so few left and even the Viet Nam veterans are reaching that age where they're starting to pass at an increasing rate. Listen, document if you can because once they are gone, there stories die with them.

Beautiful.

This was a really daring raid, using aircraft that had not been designed for what they did, but they managed to do their mission, and to thrust back the Japanese's military greatest boast, that Toyo would never be bombed.

Awesome job man, you're a great a storyteller!

That was so cool. Thanknu

Excelente video 👏.

YEAAAH IVE BEEN SO EXCITED!!!!!!!!! I really want that *Ill see you in the skies* shirt!!!!

Great video

Most heroic thing maybe in history

Just giving it back what you sow you will reap brave lads

This is great content

For the USA yes I agree but for the allies hands down there was a raid by British commandos that was simply unbelievable. The British mission to destroy the dry dock at St. Nazaire , see BBC documentary, the lives willing sacrificed, the Victoria Cross's earned. Just an incredible story.

Yes he had devastated their Sukiyaki

The Tambor class submarines, Trout and Thresher had different outcomes in the War. The Trout was sunk in April 1944, and Thresher survived the war and was decommissioned in 1947, she received 15 battle stars and a Navy Unit Commendation.

I am from OC, California. We had the Marine Airstation in Tustin, California called. LTA. Lighter then Air. It was for Blimps. How about a video on the Blimps on both Coasts during WW2. Thanks, SGT DOUG, RECON, 101ST, RVN 68-69 LZ SALLY

One of the crew was from Gentry, MO.

Great research, concise content. Info not in any movie on this subject. William (bull) Halsey pronounced HALL ZEE.

Another fantastic video. The first time I heard about the Doolittle raid. I was convinced it was Hollywood fiction. I mean launching sixteen B-25 Mitchell medium bombers off an aircraft carrier. Something it was never designed to do. Don't be ridiculous. But it turns out it wasn't Hollywood fiction. It was all true. Not only did these brave men do the impossible. Launching a fully loaded ten ton bomber off an aircraft carrier, pushing the aircraft well beyond its design capabilities, but they also succeeded in their mission. Bombing Japan, hitting the enemy where they felt safest, and Sending both the Japanese military and Government into a panic. And for me, this moment in history was when Japanese lost the war. It wasn't Midway, or Guadalcanal, or the Marianas or the two Atomic Bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. It was the Doolittle raid. Because from that moment on, the Japanese realised just who they were fighting. An enemy that would seemingly bend the laws of physics themselves in order to win. Thanks for the Videos TJ3 History. You and your videos are awsome. 👍 🇺🇸 🇬🇧

This is similar to when Rocky Balboa put Apollo Creed on the deck in the second round in their first fight as just to say" I can hurt you".

Very brave men indeed.

The best

16:50 to expand “The Untold Story of the Vengeful Japanese Attack After the Doolittle Raid” When the U.S. responded to Pearl Harbor with a surprise bombing of Tokyo, the Imperial Army took out its fury on the Chinese people. That generosity shown by the Chinese would trigger a horrific retaliation by the Japanese that claimed an estimated quarter-million lives and would prompt comparisons to the 1937-38 Rape of Nanking. American military authorities, cognizant that a raid on Tokyo would result in a vicious counterattack upon free China, saw the mission through regardless, even keeping the operation a secret from their Pacific theater allies. This chapter of the Doolittle Raid has largely gone unreported-until now. “They shot any man, woman, child, cow, hog, or just about anything that moved, They raped any woman from the ages of 10 - 65, and before burning the town they thoroughly looted it. Out of twenty-eight market towns in that region,” the committee’s report noted, “only three escaped devastation.” That August, Japan’s secret bacteriological warfare group, Unit 731, launched an operation to coincide with the withdrawal of Japanese troops from the region. In what was known as land bacterial sabotage, troops would contaminate wells, rivers, and fields, hoping to sicken local villagers as well as the Chinese forces, which would no doubt move back in and reoccupy the border region as soon as the Japanese departed. Over the course of several meetings, Unit 731’s commanding officers debated the best bacteria to use, settling on plague, anthrax, cholera, typhoid, and paratyphoid, all of which would be spread via spray, fleas, and direct contamination of water sources. For the operation, almost 300 pounds of paratyphoid and anthrax germs were ordered. Technicians filled peptone bottles with typhoid and paratyphoid bacteria, packaged them in boxes labeled “Water Supply,” and flew them to Nanking. Once in Nanking, workers transferred the bacteria to metal flasks-like those used for drinking water- and flew them into the target areas. Troops then tossed the flasks into wells, marshes, and homes. The Japanese also prepared 3,000 rolls, contaminated with typhoid and paratyphoid, and handed them to hungry Chinese prisoners of war, who were then released to go home and spread disease. Soldiers left another 400 biscuits infected with typhoid near fences, under trees, and around bivouac areas to make it appear as though retreating forces had left them behind, knowing hungry locals would devour them.

An earlier launch wasn't Mitscher's and Doolittle's decision but a personal decision of Adm. Halsey on the USS Enterprise. Halsey was a commander for the entire operation and the joint Task Force 16. Edit: An interesting fact is that there was no doubt that the B-25 could take off from the carrier because it was exercised off the coast of Virginia; when 2 B-25 tested launch from the deck of Hornet with both - full bomb load and half bomb load, with bags of sand serving as a weight equivalent.

So why hasn't the B25 that landed safely in Russia ever been recovered?

Imagine from going as insane as Japan use to be, to being one of the coolest places on earth.... and Nintendo.

It is not good, it is superb. :-)

The ole Hornet

Jimmy DooLittle, no he DooBig.✊😆

The original Enterprise

Dolittle did a lot

There should be tanker planes for mid air refueling

Hey man! Congrats on the videos! Can you share the name of the song? ,🙏

Can you do Alexander pokryshkin next?

A daring raid that made some air force people think they were the equal of naval aviation. Yet they never had the capacity to make a carrier landing or design a plane that could . A rare cooperative effort but a flawed waste of pilots . Heroic aviation but 20% casualty rate .

Be accurate, they hit other cities besides Tokyo, though only with one or two planes.

No fighter escort? Probably didn’t have the range

How many hours of research did that take??? Very impressive!!!

How did you get the bombers on the flight deck?

Americas message after the raid: “I’m coming for you and will reap a vengeance the world has never seen and never will see again”

"Something unprecedented that had never been done before." As opposed to something unprecedented that had been done before?

I have to ask: We lost 16 planes and some men. What did the Japanese lose in this attack?

General Doolittle my brother in Freemasonry /G\

Hero’s

The japanese were guilty of war crimes for the execution of the American fliers.

I can’t for the life of me understand why the emporers palace was not hit

To youtube this game is war thunder

Bull Halsey made the decision to launch early...

Too bad America doesn’t have the same backbone anymore

One

God bless America!

jakob deshazer,, one of the doollittle raiders, later became a Christian and missionary to Japan. What is crazy is that the Japenese man who led the attack on pearl harbor, also became a Christian, and these 2 men who were enemies became great friends. Just another example of how much better the world would be if they all had Jesus!

I don’t think they planned on landing in China I think they ran out of fuel and had no choice

U.S.S.HORNET CV-8 Not ownly Aircraft Carrier Doolittle Raid U.S.S.Enterprise CV-6 was Serport Ship Raid On 80th Anniversary Doolittle Raid Navy Honor Raid Naming Navy Aircraft Carrier U.S.S.James Doolittle

This was an amazing accomplishment, but I think it's a huge stretch to call it the most daring raid of WWII.

Third, YESS

Wikipedia says that 100,000 civilians died, almost one million were left homeless. Successful raid? We're talking about civilians.

W china bro, ong. Too bad they don’t have the same relationship with us anymore

It was a suicide mission. True suicide mission. They did it anyway.

Chinese got severly brutalised for facilitating this.

E

You don't know where is the east china sea

Absolute rubbish. The UK's St Nazaire operation is far more dangerous and risky in all ways than the Doolittle raid. There's a big difference between worrying about where you'll parachute out of your plane in comparison with the UK naval operation.

Voice not suitable for war doc