Here's a stab at some answers for you.
rwdfresno wrote:
I came accross some pictures of interest on the
http://www.doolittleraider.com website. Most familiar to me but the first one was new to me.
Question #1 Where is this picture actually from? Thirty Seconds over Tokyo?
The image below is itneresting to me for a few reasons. The caption would lead you to believe that this is a picture that was taken on April 18, 1942 of a B-25B taking off from the USS hornet as part of the Doolittle Raid. Something about this picture just doesnt seem right to me. 1. The picture is taken form the perspective that would require the photgrapher to be beyond the bow of the Hornet. 2. The cowlings seem "weird." 3. The aircraft in the picture including those on the deck all seem to have yellow or white cowling rings.
See link above. We came to the conclusion it was probably part of the 30 Seconds Over Tokyo filming, if I remember correctly.
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Question #2 Did any of the Doolittle Raider aircraft have colored cowling rings?
There are several examples of photos and video of the Doolittle aircraft in training at Eglin where the aircraft have obviously colored cowling rings however it is hard to find evidence of this in photos of the aircraft actually on the Hornet deck. I have heard several Doolittle Raiders discus this matter and they all don;t agree on this. Some would tell you that some did have the colored rings and others would say none did. Due to this debate John Shaw when he was creating the painting "The Hornet's nest" he and I discussed many times and he ended up carefully placing some colored rings in the painting but very subtely as to almost be a reflection.
I think they were all painted out either just before or on board the Hornet... To me, the pictures look like all of the cowls have OD that looks more fresh than the rest of the aircraft's paint.
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Question #3 Did the Doolittle Raider Aircraft have grey under surfaces?
This another topic that many Doolittle Raiders have not agreed on? Again you always see the aircraft depicted as to having the grey undersufaces however looking at many of the pictures you might get the impression that they were painted solid OD.
Absolutely. All of the photos I've been able to get my hands on show that they had the standard AAF markings and did have grey undersides - but with a straight blend, not the wavy lines you see on C and D models - and regrettably like a lot of the Doolittle Raid artwork depicts.
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Question #4 Did Lawson's aircraft No. 7 B-25B 40-2261 ever have "Ruptured Duck" nose art?
Assuming the men's word is good, yes. We just don't have a picture.
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Question (actualy group of questions) #5 We know 24 crews trained for hte raid but ohw many aircraft did that include? We know that some aircraft that were not on the raid trained for the mission such as the aircraft below B-25B 40-2266. Did any of the training aircraft go on the raid? Were these aircraft modifed prior similarly to the aircraft on the mission? Is there any serial number list of the training aircraft? Has anyone ever reasearched the operational history of 40-2347 to udnerstand if it was a part of the 17th Bombardment Group and if it could have been one of the training aircraft for the Doolittle Raid?
All of the aircraft, except possibly Doolittle's aircraft were part of the training. The men trained in the planes they would fly - and those planes were specially modified. I'm more interested in finding out what happened to the aircraft that didn't make the mission - how were they dispersed after their crews left them at Alameda? Good questions...
One other interesting thing is that several of the aircraft appear to have remnants of their War Maneuvers markings still visible or badly covered. Pretty interesting!
Ryan S.
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Aerial Photographer with
Red Wing Aerial Photography currently based at KRBD and tailwheel CFI.
Websites:
Texas Tailwheel Flight Training,
DoolittleRaid.com and
Lbirds.com.
The horse is prepared against the day of battle: but safety is of the LORD. - Prov. 21:31
- Train, Practice, Trust.