Last Doolittle Raider dies: Lt. Col. Richard “Dick” Cole passes at 103

[Sanguine]

SAN ANTONIO — Retired Air Force Lt. Col. Richard E. “Dick” Cole, the last living connection to a daring World War II bombing mission and a frequent visitor to Northwest Florida, died Tuesday in Texas at the age of 103. A memorial service is planned for Randolph Air Force Base in Texas with interment later at Arlington National Cemetery.

Cole was among the 80 Army Air Corps airmen who volunteered for the Doolittle Raiders, a team led by then-Lt. Col. James Doolittle to strike Japan after the Japanese laid waste to American naval power in an attack on Hawaii’s Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941.

The story of the Doolittle Raiders is woven tightly into the fabric of this area. For a little more than two weeks in March 1942, they trained at what was then Eglin Field. Later, flying 16 B-25 bombers from the deck of the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Hornet on April 18, 1942, the Doolittle Raiders had targets in five Japanese cities. Each plane carried four 500-pound bombs, and had been stripped of extraneous equipment to accommodate additional fuel....

https://www.nwfdailynews.com/news/20190409/last-doolittle-raider-dies-lt-col-richard-dick-cole-passes-at-103

The last of a legend.

Rest in peace, Lt. Col. Cole, with all the other Raiders.

[Applewood]

These were real heroes.  May they all rest in peace.

[Elderberry]

They were all definitely Heros.

In the same time frame were the Flying Tigers. My dad once took me with him to visit a Flying Tiger, he was friends with, that had retired up on Lake Livingston. After the war he had become a Custom Home builder in Houston. He went bankrupt 3 times. Each time after, as he was trying again, he paid off all his old debts. He finally got a name for himself and made enough to retire on.

[truth_seeker]

When those airmen took off on that mission, it was effectively a suicide mission.

They might be shot down, fail to reach Japan, pass over Japan and land in unknown China, etc.
The purpose of the missin was psychological--show Japan we were on our way. Spook them some. Bolster our hopes back home in the states.

[rangerrebew]

A legend passes: Dick Cole, last of the Doolittle Raiders, dies at 103
By: Stephen Losey   

Retired Lt. Col. Dick Cole, the last surviving member of the Doolittle Raiders who rallied the nation’s spirit during the darkest days of World War II, has passed away.

Tom Casey, president of the Doolittle Tokyo Raiders Association, confirmed to Air Force Times that Cole died Tuesday morning in San Antonio. His daughter, Cindy Cole Chal, and son, Richard Cole, were by his side, Casey said.

Cole will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery, Casey said. Memorial services are also being scheduled at Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph in Texas.

Cole, who was then-Lt. Col. Jimmy Doolittle’s co-pilot in the No. 1 bomber during the daring 1942 raid to strike Japan, was 103.

https://www.airforcetimes.com/news/your-air-force/2019/04/09/a-legend-passes-dick-cole-last-of-the-doolittle-raiders-dies-at-103/

[rangerrebew]

 

[Mod5]

Topics merged.

[skeeter]

That bottle of Hennessy VS is finally empty. Thanks and RIP.

[austingirl]

RIP, brave ones!