Because of his incredible piloting skills, and his powerful intellect, General Doolittle was able to devise a method for the B-25s to take off from the deck of an aircraft carrier. He was not supposed to go on the mission, but as a leader, he went ahead and led the raid as Plane #1 off the deck.
This is General Doolittle and his crew taken with the local military commander and his staff. They were on Tianmushan Mountain (Shan – means mountain).
The mountains are high and the steep. Doolittle was the only man who had ever parachuted before. He famously landed in a manure strewn field before he was rescued and taken to the military governor. He was then able to send messages to Washington and ask about his crews. The governor of the region was a very gracious host and he arranged for a translator to travel with Doolittle as he was being evacuated.
There are towering redwoods on Tianmushan. This really surprised me when my wife and I visited there.
This is a Zen Buddhism temple on Tianmushan with giant redwoods in the background.
