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LTC Doolittle expected to be court-martialled.

posted 14 years ago by jeffyoung1
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In accounts of the Doolittle Raid over Tokyo, Japan, while LTC Doolittle was evading Japanese Imperial Army search parties, he remarked to one of his fellow aviators that if he made it back the United States, he fully expected to be court-martialled for the loss of all sixteen B-25 Mitchell bombers and what he thought was a failed mission. His attitude was probably reflective of the U.S. Army's pre-war mentality which focused more on mistakes rather than potential and accordingly punished errors harshly. To be fair, the U.S. military does swing back and forth in its mentality during peace and during wartime. During wartime, mistakes are tended to be overlooked if the fighting man has great potential, and also manpower is in greater demand. Right now, there are men and women in the U.S. military who are rising faster and easier in rank than they would have before 2002. Conversely, such men and women who could have left the military easily during downsizing times find it very difficult to leave the military even when their terms of service expire.

Imagine LTC Doolittles's astonishment when he returned to a rousing hero's welcome in Washington D.C. President Roosevelt awarded him the Congressional Medal of Honor. More, LTC James Doolittle received two jumps in promotion to brigadier general, a tremendous accomplishment and prestige. Brigadier General Doolittle went on to serve in the European Theater of Operations and would finish out World War II as a lieutenant general (three stars). He was much of a hands-on man, technically expert, and a natural leader as well, which greatly facilitated his march up the career ranks. After a long distinguished military career, Doolittle returned to civilian life. America still remembered its hero. Doolittle would be promoted to full General (four stars) on the retired list in 1973, an honor long deserved of this great man who left this world after a long, honorable life in 1993.

[–] TorontoJediMaster 14 years ago

Well, I believe Doolittle could be excused for having a pessimistic outlook on his future at the time. He had apparently lost all sixteen of the B-25's. Many of his crews were still unaccounted for, with two crews already having been captured. Damage to Tokyo wasn't all that great. As well, for all he knew, the carriers (at that time far more irreplacable than the bombers) might have been attacked as well before they could get far enough away.

Personally, I think he wasn't serious when he said that he would probably be put in Leavenworth. I do think he was probably expecting to be consigned to flying a desk at an outpost in the middle of nowhere for the rest of the war. He had been one of the driving forces behind the mission, even if he hadn't been the one to originate the idea. I'm sure he was replaying his actions and decisions in his mind then. About the only decision he made that altered the original plan was forced upon him. When Task Force 16 was discovered when they were still far from their intended launch point, it was Doolittle's decision to launch the mission or abort. If they had aborted, chances are all the B-25's would have been lost anyway since the Hornet's crew would have pushed them over the side (and they had standing orders to do that during the launch if any of the bombers had engine trouble and couldn't take off...once all the crew egressed) so the Hornet could make ready to launch its own fighters to protect the ship. So, nothing he did really would have affected the loss of the planes once the Task Force was discovered.

As for him not going higher up the career ladder; don't forget, Doolittle wasn't really a career officer. He had spent about ten years in the Army Air Service/Army Air Corps in from World War I until 1930. From that time until 1940 he had been a civilian, serving only in the Reserves. After the war, he returned to civilian life. He actually was promoted to Lieutenant-General (three stars) before the war ended and he resumed his career with Shell Oil and service in the Reserves. He even received a post-retirement promotion to General (four stars) in 1985. (He never served in that rank, but it was the rank accorded to him on the Retired Lists).

[–] jeffyoung1 14 years ago

Well done, TorontoJediMaster.
Thank you for the compliments on one of America's historical heroes. Americans tend to have a short memory about these things.

It's true...in a book I purchased on the Doolittle Raid, LTC Doolittle did admit fully that he expected to be court-martialled for the loss of all sixteen bombers and what he felt was a failed mission. I reiterate...the U.S. military changes its personality in wartime from peacetime. In peacetime, errors and mistakes are magnified and punished harshly, usually to the effect of career damage. In wartime, all this pettiness and nitpickiness goes out the window. If an officer or enlisted man shows accomplishment, fighting ability, leadership, and potential, the military wisely holds on to him and advances him in rank and responsibility. In peacetime, the urgency to retain people is not there. Everyone is replaceable. Doolittle's mind still reflected the peacetime U.S. Army Air Corps' mindset. His rousing hero's welcome underscores just how much the U.S. military had changed in under six months.

The same is true right now, as I write of the U.S. military. The nation has been fighting two, low-intensity conflicts for seven and eight years, apiece. It's a voluntary army, not a conscripted army. As a result the military needs people. It's not always the best to keep cycling in and out new people. You need experienced people. So promotions are steady right now in the military and there's less office politics bs to put up with and less concern about how not to irritate one's superiors on a personal level. Just prior to September 11, 2001, the U.S. military was so anxious to get people to leave the military, that deals were being openly and generously offered whereby servicemen and women could leave the military with as much as one year remaining on their service contracts. The military was also freely offering honorable discharges on reserve obligations. That is, say, someone owed the military five years of reserve service, inactive, the military would waive those years and give an honorable discharge. Today in 2010, the military would laugh at anyone asking for an early discharge. Iraq and Afghanistan still need military personnel constantly. (In 1995 per chance I met a young married couple. Both were graduates of West Point. They told me that the military waived the last two years of their service contract because the military was so eager to reduce its numbers of officers and enlisted people. They took advantage of the offer and became civilians again.)

[–] TorontoJediMaster 14 years ago

I believe that in wartime, one is excused so long as someone doesn't make an incredibly stupid error that causes disaster. When things go badly in combat, but a commanding officer has made the best decisions possible then he (or, now, she) would probably be forgiven without harm to a career if they were previously showing good abilities.

Of course, sometimes an officer just has the bad luck to be in command at a time where a disaster is so huge that the officer will be blamed irregardless. A prime example his Admiral Husband E. Kimmel. He was Commander-In-Chief of the U.S. Pacific Fleet at the time of Pearl Harbor. He hadn't been given all the information available at the time (Even President Roosevelt hadn't been given all available intelligence) and he had been taking steps to try and get the Fleet on a wartime footing. So, it could be argued he wasn't to blame. However, he was in command on December 7th, and -as Harry Truman would later say- the buck stops here.

[–] ScarletPimpernel64 13 years ago

Doolittle states this in Ch. 1 of his autobiography. His mechanic told him 1. He. get the Congressional Medal. 2. He'd be promoted to General. 3. He'd have a parade. Doolittle said he actually snorted at this. The mechanic said, "When this happens, I want to still be your mechanic." Well, it all happened, and the Doolittle saw to it the man stayed on in his crew. The man (whose name escapes me) died saving Doolittle's plane. Doolittle said it was his greatest personal loss of the war.

"Be sure you're right, then go ahead."
Davy Crockett

[–] robertwnielsen 11 years ago

I watched a documentary called "High Flight," where they interviewed Doolittle, and he talked about being worried about what sort of "hanging" the Air Corps would do on him when he got home. Then, his mechanic said, "Colonel, you shouldn't be upset. The mission was a success. And when we get home, why, they'll make you a General, and they'll give you the Congressional Medal of Honor. Two very desirable outcomes. And...I cried. And as it turned out, he was right. He was right."

"Has anybody ever told you you have a SERIOUS IMPULSE CONTROL PROBLEM??"