3 real historical locations · China, Japan, Pacific Ocean
A 1944 American film based on the true story of the Doolittle Raid — the audacious B-25 bombing mission of April 1942 that struck Tokyo just four months after Pearl Harbor, demonstrating Japan was not invulnerable and providing a crucial morale boost to the American public.
CinemaMapped has mapped 3 real historical locations where the story takes place, spanning China, Japan, Pacific Ocean.
April 18 1942 — 16 B-25 Mitchell bombers launch from USS Hornet 650 miles east of Japan, 250 miles further than planned after Japanese patrol boats are spotted.
The early launch meant the bombers would run out of fuel before reaching safe airfields in China. Doolittle told his crews on launch day that there was a chance they wouldn't make it. The carrier USS Hornet had to tur...
View location →April 18 1942 — the Doolittle Raiders bomb Tokyo, Kobe, Osaka, and Nagoya. The first attack on the Japanese home islands.
Physical damage was minimal — the raid was psychological. Japanese civilians had been told the homeland was invulnerable. Emperor Hirohito was a kilometre from one of the bombs. Japan subsequently diverted fighters fr...
View location →The Raiders crash-land or bail out over Japanese-occupied China — sheltered by Chinese civilians and guerrillas before escaping.
Japan's reprisal for Chinese civilian assistance to the Doolittle Raiders was catastrophic. Operation Sei-go deployed 100,000 Japanese troops through Zhejiang and Jiangxi provinces, killing an estimated 250,000 Chines...
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