General james h doolittle biography
Jimmy Doolittle: Early Years
James Harold “Jimmy” Doolittle was born in Alameda, California, but spent much of his childhood in western Alaska. His father, Frank, was a gold prospector and carpenter in Nome, where young Jimmy learned to fight bullies and pilot a dogsled. Eventually Rosa and Jimmy Doolittle returned to California, leaving Frank behind.
Did you know? To aid his record-breaking 1922 coast-to-coast flight, U.S. military strategist Jimmy Doolittle invented a funnel-and-tube-based "pilot dehydrator"—possibly the earliest airplane toilet.
Jimmy attended high school in Los Angeles, where he distinguished himself as a gymnast and boxer. He then began courses at the University of California at Berkeley’s School of Mines.
Jimmy Doolittle: First Flights
In 1917 Doolittle became a flying cadet in the U.S. Army Signal Corps. He was soon soloing and serving as a flight gunnery instructor. He later requested a transfer to the European theater, but the armistice dashed his dreams of combat.
Instead, Doolittle worked at the Army’s Kelly Field in San Antonio, Texas, before returning to Berkeley to complete his degree. In 1922 he became the first pilot to fly coast to coast in under 24 hours, making the journey from Florida to California with just one stop. The Army sent him to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he earned master’s and doctoral degrees in aeronautical engineering.
He spent the rest of the decade working as a test pilot for military and civilian planes, setting air race records and helping to develop instruments that allowed pilots to fly in whiteout conditions. In 1930 he left the army for higher-paying work at the Shell Oil Company, where he pressed for the adoption of advanced aviation fuel.
Jimmy Doolittle: The Doolittle Raid
Returning to the army full-time in 1940, Doolittle continued his test pilot work until January of 1942, when he was summoned by General Henry H. “Hap” Arnold to lead a raid on the Japanese mainla United States Air Force general and Medal of Honor recipient James Doolittle General James Harold Doolittle Arlington National Cemetery (Arlington County, Virginia, U.S.) Josephine Daniels James Harold Doolittle (December 14, 1896 – September 27, 1993) was an American military general and aviation pioneer who received the Medal of Honor for his raid on Japan during World War II, known as the Doolittle Raid in his honor. He made early coast-to-coast flights and record-breaking speed flights, won many flying races, and helped develop and flight-test instrument flying. Doolittle grew up in Nome, Alaska. He attended the University of California, Berkeley, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in 1922. That year, he made the first cross-country flight in an Airco DH.4, and in 1925, was awarded a doctorate in aeronautics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the first such doctorate degree issued in the United States. In James Harold Doolittle was born on September 14, 1896 in Almeda, California. He studied at the prestigious University of Berkeley before joining the Signal Corps Reserve in October 1917 as a flying cadet (aspiring pilot). He is trained in aeronautics at the Rockwell Field Military School in California. Although he is not deployed on the battlefields of France, he does air patrols along the Mexican border. After the First World War, he resumed his studies at Berkeley where he graduated in 1922 from a Bachelor of Arts. His passion for aviation led him to embark on the adventure of the pioneers of the American Air Force, including aboard the DeHavilland DH-4. For his excellent service (he travels from the USA to Florida in California in 21 hours and 19 minutes only), he is decorated with the Distinguised Flying Cross. In July 1923, Doolittle entered a prestigious new American university, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (M.I.T.), where he wrote his thesis while conducting flight tests for the army. Two years later, he received his doctorate in aeronautics. While conducting demonstration flights in South America, he was injured in April 1926 and had to undergo rehabilitation for almost a year. After this period, he devotes himself to the development of the instruments that he contributes to developing (he performs a flight only with the help of instruments, from take-off to landing, without visual on the outside). He resigned from the army in February 1930 but continues to maintain links with the Air Force. In the years that followed, he participated in several races and challenges in the United States and won many trophies. His two sons were born during the period between the two wars, James Jr. and John who both become pilots in their turn. In 1940, while the war settled in Europe, James Doolittle was appointed head of the Institute of Aeronautical Sciences. He handed the uniform on July 1 of the same year: he is c .Jimmy Doolittle
Born (1896-12-14)December 14, 1896
Alameda, California, U.S.Died September 27, 1993(1993-09-27) (aged 96)
Pebble Beach, California, U.S.Buried Allegiance United States Service / branch United States Army (1917–1918)
United States Army Air Corps (1918–1941)
United States Army Air Force (1941–1947)
United States Air Force (1947–1959)Years of service 1917–1959 Rank General (Honorary) Commands Eighth Air Force
Fifteenth Air Force
Twelfth Air ForceBattles / wars World War I
Mexican Border Service
World War IIAwards Medal of Honor
Army Distinguished Service Medal (2)
Silver Star
Distinguished Flying Cross (3)
Bronze Star Medal
Air Medal (4)
Presidential Medal of FreedomSpouse(s) Children 2 Other work Air race pilot, test pilot, Shell Oil Company VP and director, chairman of Space Technology Laboratories and NACA James H. Doolittle
Biography