Meet the Raiders
“The first lesson is that you can't lose a war if you have command of the air, and you can't win a war if you haven't.” —Gen. Jimmy Doolittle
On April 18, 1942, 80 men and 16 B-25 Mitchell medium bombers set off on what some said was an impossible mission, to change the course of World War II. The actions of these 80 volunteers, led by Lt. Col. Jimmy Doolittle, were instrumental in shifting momentum in the Pacific theater and setting the stage for victory at the Battle of Midway.
These men, dubbed the Doolittle Raiders, launched 16 B-25s off the flight deck of the USS Hornet. This marked the raid as catalyst to many future innovations in U.S. air superiority from land or sea. That bold, innovative and courageous spirit of the Doolittle Raiders has been the inspiration behind the name of America's next generation bomber, the B-21 Raider, in development now by the U.S. Air Force and Northrop Grumman.
Lt. Col. James Doolittle (1896–1993)
James Doolittle was born in Alameda, California in 1896. He was leader and namesake of the Doolittle Raid, piloting the lead plane. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt awarded Doolittle with the Medal of Honor for “conspicuous leadership above and beyond the call of duty, involving personal valor and intrepidity at an extreme hazard to life.” Doolittle went on to become the first four-star general in the U.S. Air Force Reserve and first president of the Air Force Association. Doolittle died September 27, 1993, in Pebble Beach, California, and is interred at Arlington National Cemetery. Read his bio »
Meet the Crews:
Crew One
After conducting the raid, the crew bailed out over China and returned home safely.
Pilot: Lt. Col. James Doolittle (1896–1993)
Co-Pilot: Lt. Richard Cole (1915–2019)
Navigator: Lt. H.A. Potter (1918–2002)
Bombardier: Staff Sgt. Fred Braemer (1918–1989)
Engineer Gunner: Staff Sgt. Paul Leonard (1912-1943) ††
Crew Two
After conducting the raid, the crew survived a crash landing in China and returned home safely.
Pilot: Lt. Travis Hoover (1917–2004)
Co-Pilot: Lt. William Fitzhugh (1915–1981)
Navigator: Lt. Carl Wildner (1915–1994)
Bombardier: Lt. Richard Miller (1916–1943) ††
Engineer Gunner: Staff Sgt. Douglas Radney (1917–1994)
Crew Three
The crew bailed out over a mountainous hillside in China. One member of the crew, Cpl. Leland Faktor, died after falling down a cliff.
Pilot: Lt. Robert Gray (1919–1942) ††
Co-Pilot: Lt. Jacob Manch (1918–1958) ††
Navigator: Lt. Charles Ozuk (1916–2010)
Bombardier: Sgt. Aden Jones (1920–1983)
Engineer Gunner: Cpl. Leland Faktor (1922–1942)*
Crew Four
The crew bailed out over China.
Pilot: Lt. Everett Holstrom (1916–2000)
Co-Pilot: Lt. Nevelon Youngblood (1918–1949) ††
Navigator: Lt. Harry McCool (1918–2003)
Bombardier: Sgt. Robert Stephens (1915–1959)
Engineer Gunner: Cpl. Bert Jordan (1919–2001)
Crew Five
The crew bailed out over China.
Pilot: Capt. David Jones (1913–2008)
Co-Pilot: Lt. Rodney Wilder (1917–1964)
Navigator: Lt. Eugene McGurl (1917–1942) ††
Bombardier: Lt. Denver Truelove (1919–1943) ††
Engineer Gunner: Sgt. Joseph Manske (1921–1998)
Crew Six
The crew bailed out off the coast of China, resulting in two crewmembers drowning. The remaining three swam to shore, were captured and interred as prisoners of war.
Pilot: Lt. Dean Hallmark (1914–1942) **†
Co-Pilot: Lt. Robert Meder (1917–1943) **†
Navigator: Lt. Chase Nielsen (1917–2007) **
Bombardier: Sgt. William Dieter (1912–1942) **
Engineer Gunner: Cpl. Donald Fitzmaurice (1919–1942) **
Crew Seven
The crew crash landed on the coast of China and survived, but had sustained severe injuries.
Pilot: Lt. Ted Lawson (1917–1992)
Co-Pilot: Lt. Dean Davenport (1918–2000)
Navigator: Lt. Charles McClure (1916–1999)
Bombardier: Lt. Robert Clever (1914–1942) ††
Engineer Gunner: Sgt. David Thatcher (1921–2016)
Crew Eight
After conducting the raid, the crew landed in Russia where they were interred for more than a year. All returned safely home in 1943.
Pilot: Capt. Edward York (1912–1984) **
Co-Pilot: Lt. Robert Emmens (1914–1992) **
Navigator: Lt. Nolan Herndon (1918–2007) **
Bombardier: Staff Sgt. Theodore Laban (1914–1978) **
Engineer Gunner: Sgt. David Pohl (1921–1999) **
Crew Nine
The crew bailed out over China.
Pilot: Lt. Harold Watson (1916–1991)
Co-Pilot: Lt. James Parker (1920–1991)
Navigator: Lt. Thomas Griffin (1916–2013)
Bombardier: Sgt. Wayne Bissell (1921–1997)
Engineer Gunner: Sgt. Eldred Von Scott (1907–1978)
Crew Ten
The crew bailed out over China.
Pilot: Lt. Richard Joyce (1919-1983)
Co-Pilot: Lt. J. Royden Stork (1916-2002)
Navigator Bombardier: Lt. Horace Crouch (1918-2005)
Engineer Gunner: Sgt. George Larkin (1918-1942)††
Gunner: Staff Sgt. Edwin Horton (1916-2008)
Crew Eleven
The crew bailed out over China.
Pilot: Capt. Charles Greening (1914-1957)
Co-Pilot: Lt. Kenneth Reddy (1920-1942) ††
Navigator: Lt. Frank Kappeler (1914-2010)
Bombardier: Staff Sgt. William Birch (1917-2006)
Engineer Gunner: Sgt. Melvin Gardner (1920-1942) ††
Crew Twelve
The crew bailed out over China.
Pilot: Lt. William Bower (1917-2011)
Co-Pilot: Lt. Thadd Blanton (1919-1961)
Navigator: Lt. William Pound (1918-1967)
Bombardier: Tech. Sgt. Waldo Bither (1906-1988)
Engineer Gunner: Staff Sgt. Omer Duquette (1916-1942) ††
Crew Thirteen
The crew bailed out over China.
Pilot: Lt. Edgar McElroy (1912-2003)
Co-Pilot: Lt. Richard Knobloch (1918-2001)
Navigator: Lt. Clayton Campbell (1917-2002)
Bombardier: Sgt. Robert Bourgeois (1917-2001)
Engineer Gunner: Sgt. Adam Williams (1919-1993)
Crew Fourteen
The crew safely bailed out over China.
Pilot: Maj. John Hilger (1909-1982)
Co-Pilot: Lt. Jack Sims (1919-2007)
Navigator: Lt. James Macia (1916-2009)
Radio Gunner: Staff Sgt. Edwin Bain (1917-1943) ††
Engineer Gunner: Staff Sgt. Jacob Eierman (1913-1994)
Crew Fifteen
The crew landed in waters off China's coast and made it safely to Chinese shores in a life raft.
Pilot: Lt. Donald Smith (1918-1942) ††
Co-Pilot: Lt. Griffith Williams (1920-1998)
Navigator Bombardier: Lt. Howard Sessler (1917-2001)
Flight Surgeon: Lt. Thomas White, M.D. (1909-1992)
Engineer Gunner: Sgt. Edward Saylor (1920-2015)
Crew Sixteen
The crew crash landed near the China coast and were taken Prisoners of War by Japanese Forces.
Pilot: Lt. William Farrow (1918-1942) **†
Co-Pilot: Lt. Robert Hite (1920-2015) **
Navigator: Lt. George Barr (1917-1967) **
Bombardier: Cpl. Jacob DeShazer (1912-2008) **
Engineer Gunner: Sgt. Harold Spatz (1921-1942) **†
Crew photos courtesy of the U.S. Air Force
*Killed-in-Action (KIA) during Doolittle Raid
** Taken Prisoner of War (POW) by Japanese or Soviet forces
† Died or executed while imprisoned by Japanese forces
†† Died as a result of a different military operation