Destination: Tokyo, A Pictorial History of Doolittle's Tokyo Raid, April 18, 1942

Cohen, Stan

ISBN 10: 0929521528 / ISBN 13: 9780929521527

Published by Pictorial Histories Pub. Co., Inc., Missoula, MT., 1983

About this Item

Paperback quarto, viii + 136 pp., extensive b/w photos, 3 color pp., maps, color covers. 8th prntg. (1998). A wonderful source book on the Raid. Signed presentation on the t.p. by the author. Signed opposite the t.p. by 2 members of the U.S.S. Hornet. Signed on the half-title p. by 5 Doolittle Raiders (Bill Bower, R.E. Cole, Tom Griffin, Chase Nielsen, & Dave Thatcher). Signed inside the front cover by Thomas Cline, one of the 2 test pilots to fly a B-25 off the Hornet before the Raid. Paperback book in v.g. cond.

Seller Inventory # 9162

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Destination: Tokyo, A Pictorial History of Doolittle's Tokyo Raid, April 18, 1942
• Publisher: Pictorial Histories Pub. Co., Inc., Missoula, MT.
• Publication Date: 1983
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0929521528
• ISBN 13: 9780929521527
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition: First Edition, Later Printing.
• Condition: Very Good
• Dust Jacket Condition: Issued Without d/j
• Signed: Signed by Subjects
• Seller catalogs:
  • Aviation
  • Military History
  • World War II

About this title

Synopsis

Stan Cohen takes you back to America's first major strike against Japan since Pearl Harbor, 4 months earlier. What an incredible event, On April 18, 1942, after being spotted by a Japanese boat, Jimmy Doolittle and his 16 air crews took off from the USS Hornet to bomb Tokyo and other cities. It was a full 24 hours earlier than they had planned to launch, as well as hundreds of miles away from the intended launch point. Before they left, they all knew that with this sudden change in plans, they did not have enough fuel to fly all the way to friendly areas in China to land safely. They chose to go anyway. After hitting their intended targets, every single plane went down either in the water or in occupied China (except one which managed to land in Russia where the crew was promptly interned). Eight men were captured by the Japanese and only 4 of them survived the 3 1/2 year imprisonment. Japan was shocked and mortified that someone was actually able to hit them on their homeland so unexpectedly. It was a major morale booster for the USA at a time when the Japanese were winning in the Pacific. Mr. Cohen includes some fantastic photos and at the end of the book he includes a follow-up about the surviving crew members today. There are also accounts of expeditions that went back to the crash sites and talked to the Chinese people who helped the Raiders make it back home safely.