40-2344 One can imagine Lt Col Jimmy Doolittle’s B-25B tied down to USS Hornet and being armed in this diorama at the Nat. Museum of the USAF. Launching 10 hours earlier and further away from their targets then intended on 18 April 1942, the 16 B-25s left an indelible psychological impact as the first raid on the Japanese homeland. Fifteen aircraft barely reached China and one the Soviet Union on the most daring one-way mission. All 80 airmen were awarded the DFC and Doolittle received the Medal of Honor.
(more of 40-2344)