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Doolittle Raiders Last Toast Live Feed

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Thanks, boss.
 
I watched it yesterday. Very touching. I'm glad that they looped it after the Live Stream for others to see.
 
Grew up with tales of Jimmy Doolittle, Claire Chennault and the Tuskegee Airmen. All heroes in my estimation. The Wright-Pat ceremony is touching.


 
Doolittle was an amazing personality. While the Tokyo Raid may be his most famous exploit, Doolittle was, above all, an engineer. His research into high octane aviation fuels in the 1930s gave American aircraft a significant performance advantage when war finally broke out. He was also a Schneider trophy winning pilot, holder of several air records, performed the first blind landing, etc. As the commander of the 8th Air Force, he changed the mission of VIII Fighter Command from "bringing the bombers home" to "destroy the Luftwaffe". While the bomber crews may have not liked that switch, history proved that Doolittle's strategy was correct and ultimately saved lives.
 
My dad served in the Chinese Theatre during WWII with the Army Air Corps' Flying Tigers. He would rarely talk about his experiences.
 
rick_ingram said:
My dad served in the Chinese Theatre during WWII with the Army Air Corps' Flying Tigers. He would rarely talk about his experiences.
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Many vets didn't. It was a job to do and when they got home, many just mentally put it behind them. It's really been in the last 20 to 25 years where there has been a significant movement to get WWII veterans to open up and talk about their experiences as they are aging. If they don't open up, then their stories die with them. Some of the books that have come out recently have been exceptional and there are still many stories that need to be told. But, time is definitely not on the side of the "greatest generation". I've been blessed to have worked alongside some amazing veterans while doing the aircraft restoration. There are days where I may not even lift a finger, but will sit back and just listen to their stories.
 
After I was about 14, my dad would give out bits and pieces. He had a "bring-back" Walther P-38 and that was the first pistol I'd ever fired. He related some of the experiences he'd had while in the winter of '45 as he demonstrated how to field-strip and clean that weapon. He used to say he was "in overtime" with regard to surviving the war, he'd been knocked out of an anti-aircraft gun mount by an 88 round landing in proximity. His outfit had just crossed the Ruhr. One of the rare times I witnessed him teary-eyed was as I departed for my war... and on the day I returned. His letters to me as I sat in SE Asia were always simply signed: "Y.O.M." Our bond was tight before but grew stronger after. I surely miss the sage old bastage. His council was irreplaceable.
 
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