GENERAL JAMES DOOLITTLE

Name: James Harold Doolittle  

Nickname: Jimmy

Born: 12/14/1896  Alameda, CA

Died: 9/27/1993 (age 96) - Pebble Beach, CA

Place of burial: Arlington National Cemetery

Years of Service: 1917 - 1959

 

He was awarded the Medal of Honor, and was promoted from Colonel to Brigadier General for leading the first carrier-based bomber attack on mainland Japan in 1942. His citation, presented personally by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, reads in part: "With the apparent certainty of being forced to land in enemy territory or perish at sea, Colonel Doolittle personally led a squadron of Army bombers, manned by volunteer crews, in a highly destructive raid on the Japanese mainland."

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General Doolittle died in California on September 27, 1993 and was buried in Section 7-A of Arlington National Cemetery, with his high school sweetheart, Josephine Daniels Doolittle (May 24, 1895-December 24, 1988).

Commands
Twelfth Air Force, Fifteenth Air Force, Eighth Air Force

 

Awards

Medal of Honor

Distinguished Service Medal

Silver Star

Distinguished Flying Cross