Japan’s Dec. 7, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor delivered a devastating humiliation to the United States. The empire managed to strike 5,000 miles across the vast Pacific Ocean, destroy the U.S.’s most potent naval fleet and escape unscathed despite being an insignificant economy. In the ensuing months, the Allies suffered defeat after defeat as the Japanese seized control of most of Asia. A shaken President Franklin Roosevelt urged the U.S. military to devise a plan to strike back. A corps of 80 heroic flyers led by Col. James H. Doolittle volunteered to risk their lives on a perilous mission. They charted an outlandish plan using unproven aviators and inadequate aircraft launched from the Navy’s newest carrier. Your instructor introduces you to Lt. Col. James Doolittle, legendary aviator, and Lt. Col. Richard Cole, the last of the Doolittle Raiders.
Bring your interest in World War II or aviation history to hear stories of courage, ingenuity and audacity that resurrected America’s winning spirit.
Recommended: “Thirty Seconds over Tokyo” by Captain Ted W. Lawson
