1940 - 1945

Lt. General James Doolittle

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James Harold Doolittle (1896 - 1993) was an American military general and aviation pioneer. He made early coast-to-coast flights, won many flying races, and helped develop instrument flying.

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Doolittle studied as an undergraduate at University of California, Berkeley, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in 1922 and earning a doctorate in aeronautics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1925. He was a flying instructor during World War I and a Reserve officer in the United States Army Air Corps, but he was recalled to duty during World War II.

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He was awarded the Medal of Honour for personal valour and leadership as commander of the 'Doolittle Raid', a bold long range retaliatory air raid on some of the Japanese main islands on April 18th, 1942, four months after the attack on Pearl Harbour. The raid was a major morale booster for the United States and Doolittle was celebrated as a hero.

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Doolittle was promoted to lieutenant general and commanded the Twelfth Air Force over North America, the Fifteenth Air Force over the Mediterranean, and the Eighth Air Force over Europe. After World War II, he retired and left the Air Force but remained active in many technical fields, and was eventually promoted to general 26 years after retirement.

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Source: Wikipedia