Retired Maj. Nolan Herndon, a Doolittle Raider from South Carolina, died on Oct. 7 of pneumonia. He was 88. The State reports that Herndon was the navigator on the No. 8 B-25 Mitchell bomber, one of 16 bombers that launched off the USS Hornet to attack the Japanese mainland after the attack on Pearl Harbor. His aircraft was one that did not crash or run out of fuel after the mission. In an earlier interview, Herndon told the newspaper that No. 8 was diverted to the Soviet Union on a secret mission.
As Air Force leaders consider concepts of operations for Collaborative Combat Aircraft, sustainment in the field—and easing that support by using standard parts and limiting variants—should be a key consideration, according to a new study from AFA's Mitchell Institute of Aerospace Studies.