“Bird” Watching
That is one of a group of North American B-25 Mitchell bombers that took to local skies in celebration of the 71st and final reunion of the Doolittle Raiders, the group and mission depicted in the movie, Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo.
The Doolittle Raid was really a psychological warfare operation as it wasn’t able to actually damage much of Japan’s military effort, but it gave a boost to American morale, and pinned down a segment of the Japanese military to defend the home islands against further raids.
The Raid was originally scheduled for April 19th, 1942, the anniversary of the Battles of Lexington and Concord, but at to be advanced because the aircraft carrier Hornet that was carrying the aircraft was spotted by a Japanese submarine.
The Reunion was held locally because the training for the Raid took place on Eglin Air Force Base. This is the last year because the few survivors are currently in their 90s.
