Dick Cole the last Dolittle raider Dies aged 103

[Kapitan]

Have to take my hat off to the guy he did have a good innings but his service is appreciated and respected.

Fair winds and following skies RIP

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

[Eichhörnchen]

:Kaleun_Salute:

[vienna]

When you consider the Doolittle mission was pretty much a "one-way" ride and the men knew it, their heroism is all the more impressive. They took aircraft that were not intended to be launched from carriers and did it; they flew a longer distance than intended to their target due to possibly being spotted by picket boats, pretty much making it a surety they would be flying on fumes to their refuel point, if they got there t all; they bailed out or crashed in territory held by the enemy and some of them were able to make it back to friendly forces, although some did not and paid the price. They did what couldn't be done. Now the last of them is now on his final flight home, to join his crews. What they did and who they were and who they are to the history of our country will not be forgotten...


May your wings carry you home to a final peace, Dick Cole...








<O>

[Bilge_Rat]

Rest in peace.

[u crank]

Indeed very brave men. R.I.P. Lt. Col. Cole. :salute:

[blackswan40]

Retired Lt. Col. Richard Cole, the last survivor of the Doolittle Raid, the first U.S. strike on the Japanese islands during World War II, died Tuesday in Texas. He was 103.

https://www.mediafire.com/convkey/eed1/wp5o4yg25dzu9nw4g.jpg (http://www.mediafire.com/view/wp5o4yg25dzu9nw/Richard_Cole-2.jpg/file)

The crew of the lead plane in the 1942 raid on the Japanese homeland. From left, Lt. Henry A. Potter, navigator; Lt. Col. James H. Doolittle, pilot; Staff Sgt. Fred A. Braemer, bombardier; Lt. Richard E. Cole, co-pilot; and Staff Sgt. Paul J. Leonard, flight engineer/gunner. All five were rescued after the raid.


Cole was one of 80 men sent to target factory areas and military installations in Japan on April 18, 1942. The daring raid stunned Japan and is credited with boosting U.S. morale and helping turn the tide of the war in the Pacific.
“There’s another hole in our formation. Our last remaining Doolittle Raider has slipped the surly bonds of Earth, and has reunited with his fellow Raiders,” General David Goldfein, chief of staff of the Air Force said Tuesday. “The Legacy of the Doolittle Raiders – his legacy – will live forever in the hearts and minds of Airmen, long after we’ve all departed.”

https://www.mediafire.com/convkey/8955/9cx7dcqtkao4e7i4g.jpg (http://www.mediafire.com/view/9cx7dcqtkao4e7i/Richard_Cole.jpg/file)

Cole, born in Dayton, Ohio, was mission commander Jimmy Doolittle’s co-pilot in the all-volunteer attack which took place less than five months after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.
After bombing targets in northwest Tokyo, Cole's plane turned toward China with plans to land at an airfield. But things went awry when authorities at the airfield heard their engines, assumed it was Japanese and turned off the lights. Cole and Doolittle couldn't find a place to land at night.

2014 The Washington Post ARLINGTON, VA - MAY 23: Lt. Col. Richard Cole, a member of the 'Doolittle Raiders' who bombed Japan, visits the grave site of Lt. Col. Jimmy Doolittle, who he flew with on the bombing mission, buried at Arlington National Cemetery, in Arlington, Virginia, Friday, May 23, 2014. Lt. Col. Richard Cole is having a documentary done about him and the story of the 'Doolittle Raiders'. (Photo by Melina Mara/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
Shortly before running out of fuel, everyone bailed out; Cole gave himself a black eye when he pulled his parachute ripcord. He landed in a tree where he spent the night, climbing down in the morning, and walking the whole day before finding a couple of Chinese students who eventually took him to Doolittle, who said, "Boy, am I glad to see you."
Of the 80 men who flew from the USS Hornet deck, three died in the raid, and four who were captured by the Japanese were executed or starved to death. Two others who survived the raid were later killed while flying the China-Burma-India route over the Himalayas known as the "Hump."

After the raid, Cole went to India, helped establish the dangerous Hump flying route and flew more than 100 missions carrying cargo, earning three Distinguished Flying Crosses.

The Doolittle Raiders received the Congressional Gold Medal in 2015, and donated it to the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force in Ohio.
Cole, who often attended Raider-related events and air shows, told The Associated Press last year that since he was older than many of the other Raiders, he didn’t expect to be the last.
“I figured that Mother Nature and the good man upstairs would pick the time, and I wouldn’t have any control over it,” he said.
Cole will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery, the Air Force Times reported, and memorial services are also being scheduled at Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph in Texas.

[Jimbuna]

Blue Skies

~SALUTE~

[Jimbuna]

Threads merged.

[Commander Wallace]

When you consider the Doolittle mission was pretty much a "one-way" ride and the men knew it, their heroism is all the more impressive. They took aircraft that were not intended to be launched from carriers and did it; they flew a longer distance than intended to their target due to possibly being spotted by picket boats, pretty much making it a surety they would be flying on fumes to their refuel point, if they got there t all; they bailed out or crashed in territory held by the enemy and some of them were able to make it back to friendly forces, although some did not and paid the price. They did what couldn't be done. Now the last of them is now on his final flight home, to join his crews. What they did and who they were and who they are to the history of our country will not be forgotten...


May your wings carry you home to a final peace, Dick Cole...

<O>




That pretty much says it all about Richard's bravery and dedication. Rest in peace Mr. Cole and thanks for your service. :Kaleun_Salute:


Great write up and article as well, blackswan. Great pictures too. Nicely done. :up:

[Platapus]

Has to suck a little to be the last of your group to survive. That has to be a level of loneliness.