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Lucky13
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Only remember seeing them with 160 gallon external fuel tanks....
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One thing on the Doolittle raid is that there is not much information on what exact damage was caused by the raid. I have heard about the aircraft carrier but other than that they just say minimum damage. I would still like to know more about the damage inflicted from the raid.
Also, isn't the Lexington and Saratoga bigger than the Hornet? Couldn't they have used one of them?
I'm pretty sure U.S.S. Saratoga was undergoing repair from torpedo damage. U.S.S. Lexington was in the wrong place because of her involvement in several raids around the Solomons. U.S.S. Hornet, being moved from the Atlantic to the Pacific, was in the right place at the right time to pick up USAAF planes and personnel from the U.S.One thing on the Doolittle raid is that there is not much information on what exact damage was caused by the raid. I have heard about the aircraft carrier but other than that they just say minimum damage. I would still like to know more about the damage inflicted from the raid.
Also, isn't the Lexington and Saratoga bigger than the Hornet? Couldn't they have used one of them?
The two Lexington class carriers were slightly larger (60 feet longer, 12,000 tons heavier, half a knot faster, and 6 aircraft more powerful) than Hornet, but were not readily available at the time. Saratoga was in drydock and Lexington was prowling the Coral Sea protecting Port Moresby. Besides, Doolittle's planes were already embarked on Hornet, who had ferried them from Alameda, and transferring them to another carrier would have been impossible to do in the requisite secrecy.Also, isn't the Lexington and Saratoga bigger than the Hornet? Couldn't they have used one of them?
Interesting about the range data and comparison to the B-25. It still isn't as cool as the B-25.From my post about the book Douglas B18 and B23, American Forgotten Warriors,
Reasons why the B23 was the first choice: No B25B available. B23 wing span at 97 feet could clear the island but less could be parked on the deck. B23s were expendable. B23 at normal power could clear 50 ft height in 1465 feet. B25B needed 2130 feet. B23 at max bomb load could fly at 172 mph at 30% power at a range of 3600 miles. The B25B at 33% power ran at 200 mph with a max range of 2600 miles. B23 could make the flight armed with full crew and 3 .30 cal and the .50 cal in the tail. And the B23 could have reached the fields in China.
The B25 is still the family's first choice since a great uncle fly them with the 13 AF.Interesting about the range data and comparison to the B-25. It still isn't as cool as the B-25.
At the time, the Yorktown was in the Coral Sea.Weren't USS Yorktown busy as well....or do I remember wrong, Gilbert Islands and Marshall Islands?
I'm pretty sure U.S.S. Saratoga was undergoing repair from torpedo damage. U.S.S. Lexington was in the wrong place because of her involvement in several raids around the Solomons. U.S.S. Hornet, being moved from the Atlantic to the Pacific, was in the right place at the right time to pick up USAAF planes and personnel from the U.S.
At the time, the Yorktown was in the Coral Sea.
Can we put a CVE and/or DE hitting 28+ kn into the myths busted section of the forum?A typical CVE could hit 24 knots in a brief high speed dash and once or twice hit 28 in a desperation move by running their 440 PSI boilers at 660 for a few minutes. Their sustained cruise speeds were somewhere south of 20 knots. Not good company for a 28-30 knot fast carrier taskforce.
It illustrates how QI changed from quite interesting to AB absolute bollocks.I may be wrong about this, but I think it illustrates how a "one off" can be eventually accepted as normal practice. Where I may be wrong is in this - It is my understanding, to lighten the aircraft involved in the raid a lot of the defensive armament was removed, being replaced by lengths of broomstick. Now as I said, I'm not sure if that is correct, but what I can say, in an episode of "QI" a couple of years ago (with Sandi Toksvig taking over from Stephen Fry) Toksvig presented the "interesting fact" that the B-25 ALWAYS had broomsticks instead of actual defensive machine guns, and that statement WAS made. What does that illustrate? Piss poor research I think!!!
Yeah, the black painted broomstick were placed in the tail, which at that time, did not have a gunner position, either!I may be wrong about this, but I think it illustrates how a "one off" can be eventually accepted as normal practice. Where I may be wrong is in this - It is my understanding, to lighten the aircraft involved in the raid a lot of the defensive armament was removed, being replaced by lengths of broomstick. Now as I said, I'm not sure if that is correct, but what I can say, in an episode of "QI" a couple of years ago (with Sandi Toksvig taking over from Stephen Fry) Toksvig presented the "interesting fact" that the B-25 ALWAYS had broomsticks instead of actual defensive machine guns, and that statement WAS made. What does that illustrate? Piss poor research I think!!!
Because of the early launch, only one B-25 crossed the coast of Japan at its correct point. That was Plane No 10, commanded by Joyce and navigated by my High School Teacher, H. E. Crouch.B-25s had a navigator (and work station) and long range radio.
I beleive Paul has some photos of the various "field built" rear arrangements in the "B-25 Weapons Thread".Because of the early launch, only one B-25 crossed the coast of Japan at its correct point. That was Plane No 10, commanded by Joyce and navigated by my High School Teacher, H. E. Crouch.
The standard B-25B weapons fit included a remote controlled belly turret with two .50 cal guns. Those were removed on the Doolittle B-25's to allow extra fuel as well as because experience showed showed you could not hit anything with the damn thing, anyway. Thus the need for the dummy guns sticking out the tail bubble. It is entirely possible, that given the lack of low six o clock protection, more than just the Doolittle B-25's stuck a couple of dummy guns out the tail bubble. I think one book mentioned some units employed a .30 cal gun mounted a Jeep spring sticking out the tail bubble, designed to be turned on remotely to scare off fighters attacking from the tail.
In fact, in the Med some B-25 units installed a tail gun position with two .50 cal guns that looked very much like the ones factory installed on the B-25H and B-25J, although a little cruder.
The standard B-25B weapons fit included a remote controlled belly turret with two .50 cal guns. Those were removed on the Doolittle B-25's to allow extra fuel as well as because experience showed showed you could not hit anything with the damn thing, anyway.