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The Doolittle Raid on April 18, 1942, was planned as a morale boost after the American defeat at Pearl Harbor. The American bombing of mainland Japan inflicted relatively minor damage, but triggered a hubristic decision by the Japanese Navy that eventually led to their downfall. The facts: aviation pioneer and all-round daredevil Colonel James H. Doolittle led
16 B-25B Mitchell Bombers on a bombing run over Tokyo, Kobe, Nagoya, and Yokohama. They took off from aircraft carriers over 800 miles away. The plan was to take off from 400 miles so the planes could land in unoccupied China, but the carriers were spotted by Japanese surveillance ships before reaching their goal and the planes took off immediately. As a result, they were forced to land in Occupied China after the attack. The results: a few buildings were bombed, three pilots died in accidents, and eight were captured. However, the Doolittle Raid inspired the head of Japan's navy to extend his country's defensive perimeter all the way to Midway Island. At the Battle of Midway (June 3-7, 1942), the United States destroyed most of Japan's aircraft carriers, and effectively ended the threat of further Japanese invasion in the Pacific. But don't just read about it, watch the movie! Go rent Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo and save yourself a disheartening trip to the multiplex.
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