A U.S. Army Air Corps (USAAC) and U.S. Army Air Forces (USAAF) officer, Doolittle is best remembered for leading the spectacular carrier-launched Doolittle Tokyo Raid early in the war. He was born in Alameda, California, and educated at Los Angeles Junior College and the University of California. He joined the Army Reserve Corps in October 1917 shortly after the United States entered World War I and was assigned to the Signal Corps, in which he served as a flight instructor through 1919. In 1920, Doolittle was commissioned a first lieutenant in the U.S. Army Air Service (USAAS) and earned national attention by making the first transcontinental flight in less than 14 hours, on September 4, 1922. Established now as a world-class flier, Doolittle was enrolled under USAAC auspices in the aeronautical science program at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He earned a doctorate of science degree from that institution in 1925, then worked in several military aviation testing stations. Simultaneously, during 1925-30, Doolittle participated in high-profile air races as well as demonstrations of experimental aircraft. His objective was to promote aviation generally and military aviation in particular. A major breakthrough came in September 1929, when he demonstrated the potential of instrument flying by making the first ever instruments-only ("blind") landing.

In 1930, Doolittle resigned his commission to become aviation manager for Shell Oil, where he worked on the development of new high-efficiency aviation fuels. He also continued to race, claiming victories in a number of prestigious competitions, including those for the Harmon (1930) and Bendix (1931) trophies. In 1932, he set a world speed record. However, as war became imminent in July 1940, Doolittle returned to active duty as a major in the U.S. Army Air Corps. In the months following the Battle of Pearl Harbor (December 7, 1941), the American and Allied forces were in a desperate defensive position in the Pacific theater. In an effort to raise Allied morale and to force the Japanese to divert a portion of their air forces to defense of their homeland, Doolittle eagerly embraced a proposal for a bombing raid on Tokyo. With others, he planned the logistics of the raid. The formidable problem was that Tokyo was far out of range of any U.S. air bases. Aircraft carriers were not designed to launch bombers capable of the mission. Doolittle worked with navy and army air forces personnel to devise techniques for launching 16 B-25 medium bombers from the deck of the USS Hornet. . .

Free term papers are not written to satisfy your specific instructions. You can use our professional writing services to buy a custom written research paper, term paper, or essay on Biographies at affordable price. CustomTermPapers is the best solution for those who seek help in writing term papers, essays, and research papers related to Biographies and other relevant topics.