On April 18, 1942, 16 American B-25 bombers, launched from the
aircraft carrier USS Hornet 650 miles east of Japan and commanded
by Lieutenant Colonel James H. Doolittle, attack the Japanese
mainland.

The now-famous Tokyo Raid did little real damage to Japan (wartime Premier Hideki Tojo was inspecting military bases during the raid;
one B-25 came so close, Tojo could see the pilot, though the
American bomber never fired a shot)–but it did hurt the Japanese government’s prestige. Believing the air raid had been launched
from Midway Island, approval was given to Admiral Isoroku
Yamamoto’s plans for an attack on Midway–which would also
damage Japanese “prestige.” Doolittle eventually received the
Medal of Honor.

James Harold Doolittle
(December 14, 1896 – September 27, 1993)

The Songbird. a twin-engine Cessna T-50 .

The television version (NBC/ABC) starred Kirby Grant as Schuyler 
“Sky” King, an Arizona rancher and airplane pilot, with Gloria
Winters as his niece Penny and Sky’s nephew Clipper, played by
Ron Hagerty. 

The series had strong Western elements, King usually captured
criminals and spies and found lost hikers, though he did so with
the use of his airplane, the Songbird.
 

From left: Kirgy Grant,Gloria Winters and Ron Hagerty.

Original Release: September 16, 1951 – March 8, 1959.

During production of the series.

BRIAN THOMAS

Charles Augustus Lindbergh
(February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974)

From London’s Heathrow Airport and Orly Airport outside Paris, the
first Concordes with commercial passengers simultaneously took
flight on January 21, 1976. The London flight was headed to Bahrain
in the Persian Gulf, and the Paris to Rio de Janeiro via Senegal in
West Africa. At their cruising speeds, the innovative Concordes flew
well over the sound barrier at 1,350 miles an hour, cutting air travel
time by more than half.

On January 13, 1982, an Air Florida Boeing 737-222 plunged into
the Potomac River in Washington, D.C., killing 78 people. The
crash, caused by bad weather, took place only two miles from
the White House.

The Air Florida flight took off from Washington National Airport
in Arlington, Virginia, with 74 passengers and 5 crew members
on board. The plane had flown into Washington from Miami in
the early afternoon and was supposed to return to Ft. Lauderdale,
Florida, after a short stop.