75^thAnniversary Doolittle Raid Memorial Service Speech

By Jeff Thatcher

Lt. Col. Cole, Doolittle Raider family, members of the military and friends of the Raiders, today we observe the 75^thanniversary of a mission that electrified our nation and raised its morale during a time of dire need.

A mission consisting of 80 volunteer airmen – enlisted men and officers alike – led by Lt. Col. James H. “Jimmy” Doolittle – a man small in physical stature but a giant in terms of brilliance, leadership and courage.

A mission of calculated risk – superb leadership, well-trained forces, equations computed, contingencies planned – all working together.

A mission of 16 B-25B Mitchell medium Army bombers rising off the deck of the carrier USS Hornet – launched 10 hours earlier and 170 nautical miles further from Japan than planned.

A mission where not one of the 80 volunteer airmen ever wavered – though all knew they were likely headed on a one-way suicide journey, or to capture and torture by brutal Japanese forces. A mission in which all 16 bombers reached Japan safely, dropping their loads of four bombs each on military and industrial targets in Tokyo, Yokohama, Nagoya, Kobe and Osaka.

A mission that then took 15 of the bombers southwest off the southeastern coast of Japan, across the East China Sea toward eastern China, and the 16^th bomber, extremely low on fuel, to the Soviet Union.

A mission that found the 15 planes headed toward China approaching darkness, low on fuel with the weather rapidly deteriorating.

A mission suddenly inspired by a divine tail wind that blew those 15 bombers closer to their destination where the crews bailed out over eastern China or crash landed their planes along the Chinese Coast.

A mission in which three Raiders were killed after exiting their aircraft and eight were captured by the Japanese. Three were later executed, one starved to death and four others were held captive for 40 months.

A mission that drew the help of friendly people speaking an unknown tongue, who had witnessed strange white men floating down from the sky like ghosts and winged crafts crash landing along their coast.

A mission where the differences between these strange white men and their benefactors were transcended by kindness and grace, and a commonality of opposition to the hated Japanese oppressors who had invaded their lands.

A mission that saw those benefactors suffer horribly when the Japanese retaliated, slaughtering an estimated 250,000 Chinese in the process.

A mission that helped change the course of World War II by causing the Japanese military to recall many units back to the home islands for defense, where they remained while battles raged throughout the Pacific.

A mission that provoked Admiral Yamamoto, architect of the raid on Pearl Harbor, to attempt an ill-fated strike against Midway Island, a major defeat from which the Imperial Japanese Navy never recovered.

A mission known as Special Aviation Project No. 1, the first major joint operation since the Civil War.

Today, we observe a celebration recognizing the courage, duty and honor of the Doolittle Raiders.

And we salute those 80 brave volunteers who took off that morning on April 18, 1942 against overwhelming odds, yet confident in their training and knowing they were striking a blow for American freedom.

We honor the mission’s last surviving member, 101-year-old Lt. Col. Richard E. “Dick” Cole, Doolittle’s co-pilot. We also honor my late father, S. Sgt. David J. Thatcher, engineer-gunner on Crew #7, the Ruptured Duck.

And we remember that our freedom has been earned by the blood and sacrifice of the Doolittle Raiders – and by so many others before them and so many since – our service men and women, protecting us from hostile forces.

In the words of John F. Kennedy: “We dare not forget today that we are the heirs of that first revolution, tempered by war, disciplined by a hard and bitter peace, proud of our ancient heritage, and unwilling to witness or permit the slow undoing of those human rights to which this nation has always been committed.”

“Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, to assure the survival and the success of liberty.”

Today, on the 75^thanniversary of the Doolittle Raid, we remember the Doolittle Raiders – our fathers, our countrymen, our heroes.

And we thank God that this modest force of 80 men in their 16 planes were so willing to step up, shoulder the weight of a wounded nation and strike back with a mighty blow for America and freedom.

And we recognize and honor the Doolittle Raiders for their courage in helping bring our great country back from the precipice of uncertainty, hopelessness and fear.

In his official report on the Doolittle Raid written in June 1942, logistics officer Merian C. Cooper wrote: “And so, some of them died, and some were wounded, and some are prisoners in Japanese hands, to be sweated to tell what they know; and some are crippled for life, but most of them are living, as their deed will live in song and story as long as our country shall live.”

“Distinguished Flying Cross – Silver Star – Medal of Honor – pin it on them. When all said that it couldn’t be done – that it was suicide to try it – Doolittle and his men did it – they bombed Japan!