087 - A Careful Launch

When Jimmy Doolittle climbed into the cockpit of his B-25 with his four-man crew, all eyes were upon him. Although the Hornet had successfully launched B-25s directly from her flight deck back in the Atlantic, this time, the deck was filled with planes and the runway was much shorter.

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The flight deck crew untied Doolittle’s B-25 and readied it for takeoff as the Hornet turned into the wind. He waited for the Deck Coordinator to give him the signal and watched the Hornet’s motion over the waves. If he timed his takeoff incorrectly, the Bomber could “go in the drink” and crash directly into the water.
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When the signal came, Doolittle pushed the throttle forward as far as it would go. Then, he unlocked the brakes and the Bomber rumbled down the deck. The midshipmen aboard the Task Force’s ships watched anxiously until his plane rose into the air. The men cheered and saluted Doolittle and his crew as the plane circled the Hornet.
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Meanwhile, the next plane was already underway. It’s pilot, however, mistimed his takeoff. For a moment, the plane dipped below the deck’s surface and out of view. The Bomber flew just above the waves until the engines pushed the plane upward into the sky.
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As each Bomber reached altitude, it joined formation, circling above the Hornet and her Task Force. In fact, all 16 Bombers made it off the end of the Hornet’s deck and into the sky. Now, they were ready to deliver bombs to the heart of Japan.

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