Retired Lt. Col. Richard Cole, Maj. Thomas Griffin, and SSgt. David Thatcher—three of the five surviving Doolittle Raiders—are scheduled to gather in late March in Punta Gorda, Fla., for a historic reunion with a Chinese delegation sent by the Chinese ambassador to the United States. This meeting, taking place in conjunction with the 31st Annual Florida International Air Show, will be the first time that these Doolittle Raiders have met with a Chinese delegation since their April 1942 bombing raid on Tokyo and subsequent escape to safety through China. Of the 80 Doolittle Raiders, 64 who bailed out over China or crash landed in their B-25s in Chinese territory evaded Japanese capture and made it to safety due to the bravery and sacrifice of Chinese soldiers and civilians. (Doolittle Tokyo Raiders release) (For more, read Doolittle’s Raid from the Air Force Magazine archives)
NATO Scrambles Fighter in Newest Response to Russian Drones
Sept. 16, 2025
NATO scrambled its first fighter Sept. 13 under its new plan to bolster its defenses against Russian air incursions that was put into place after an array of Russian drones flew into Polish airspace last week, the officials from the alliance’s military command said.
