I had the honor of escorting the four surviving members of Doolittle's Raiders yesterday in Ft Walton Beach FL with the Patriot Guard Riders, they each had a Model A roadster to ride in. It was the last day of their final reunion, a nice sunny day for a parade, true heros. There were 3 B-25s and 9 other planes circling above the parade, pretty neat. We were only going about 5 mph, left hand got cramps from pulling the clutch so much. Pics link http://vicandmarilyn.smugmug.com/Military/71st-Doolittle-Raiders-Reunion/28984653_M2h5xt
Escorting them would be quite an honor. Those men and their fellow airmen gave America a much needed boost at that time. They took off from that carrier facing incredible uncertainty. Selfless people of the first order.
I heard about this in the news. Was gonna go but got wrapped up in the Average Joes car show. Good on you 55chevy.
I've seen B-25's flying over the NW Florida beach the last couple of days and wondered what was going on. Sure is nice to hear those twin piston motors. I can't imagine the stories those Doolittle Raiders have to tell as their mission was to fly to Mainland China after the Tokyo raid. Many years ago I read the book Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo which was the Doolittle raid our first WWll strike against Japan.
Read the book "30 Minutes Over Tokyo" when I was 11 & bought a B-25 model to build. We now live at an airport on Doolittle Ln. That gutsy little guy was the first to fly IFR and first off the deck on that raid. Part of that final kick ass generation and one of God's many blessings to this country!
Respect. That Doolittles co-pilot Dick Cole is still able to handle a B-25 71 years after the mission is awesome. That this will be their last gathering is sad,but their sacrifices for their country will never be forgotten.
amen to all of the above, and to the patriot guard, they always show up here in Carrabelle for our camp Gordon Johnson parade ever year.... some great folks, I drive my 31 tudor in the parade also, its not street legal yet so I get a kick driving in the parade.....those guys are true hero's god bless em.....
Wow! What an honor. These guys are real heroes and a national treasure. At least they are to me. I'm sad to know this is their last reunion. They must be up there in years and I imagine it won't be too long before they will be reunited with their old crew mates in Shangri-La. It's also sad that we are losing the remaining members of this great generation so quickly. In a few short years they will all be gone. Thank you, 55Chevy for the work you do with the Patriot Guard Riders.
Saxman has it right. WWll veterans are dying at a rate of thousands a week. One of which was my Dadno to long ago. For a great tribute to our WWll Veterans go to www.beforeyougo.us Click on the before you go icon to play the video.
The Doolittle Raiders Reunion was held here in Columbia SC about 10 years ago. The sound of those big airplanes is amazing. Mr. Sallie Crouch ... a Doolittle raider was a school teacher later in his life and lived here in Columbia. He taught school with my wife. I live about a mile from where the Doolittle Raiders first practiced. ( now Columbia Metro Airport ) It is sad that this was the last reunion. Those men were true HEROES !!!
4 B-25s & 2 groups of 3 T-6s flew over the parade doing a number of circles over the parade. 3 of the 4 surviving Raiders attended.
Their mission took an insane amount of guts... Take off in a bomber from an aircraft carrier,drop bombs, and if everthing goes well, crash land somewhere in china where there were no airstrips. Almost a suicide mission.
IF they had taken off @ the originaly proposed spot they would have made it to airfields in China, but IJN Patrol Ships discovered them earlier than anticipated resulting in a launch much further away from China.
How about our PGR Ride Captain Big Vic got a ride on one of the B-25s, too cool, those planes are so great, and he got a great view of the Emerald Coast: Hey, Early Father's Day present from my wife. Thought I would share. It was awesome! Take care. Vic http://vicandmarilyn.smugmug.com/Military/B-25-Flight-Yellow-Rose-21/29023613_7thfts
Hey Randy, here's my brother in laws flight jacket 5th Air Force nose art on the B-25 "Mitchell" that he piloted for 57 missions in the So.Pacific theater. He gave it to me after returning home in 1943---I was 11 at that time.
The Jalopy Journal
