Air Force to honor Doolittle Raiders with Air Power Legacy Series in 2023
8/15/2023
“You have struck the hardest blow of the war directly at the enemy’s heart. You have made history.”Admiral William Halsey Jr.
Air Force to honor Doolittle Raiders with Air Power Legacy Series in 2023
Air Force football will honor the Doolittle Raiders with the 2023 edition of the Air Power Legacy Series uniforms. The Falcons will wear the uniform for the Navy game Oct. 21 in Annapolis, Md.
The chrome helmet features the B-25 on the front bumper while the back bumper has the nicknames of the planes. Not every helmet will have a nickname, as only nine of the 16 planes had nicknames. Those unnamed aircraft will be represented with the name Doolittle. The right of the helmet features an image of a B-25 while the left has the Raiders patch from the jersey.
The jersey features letters and numbers of steel and rivets like on the B-25 aircraft the Raiders flew in the mission. The right chest lists tail numbers of the aircraft that flew the mission. The left sleeve features the squadron patch of the Raiders, which was created and graciously permitted for use by the Doolittle Tokyo Raiders Association. The back nameplate says Doolittle Raiders. The pants feature the roundel logo on the left front, which includes the star that appeared on the B-25 aircraft. The Raiders mantra, Ever into Peril, appears down the right side of the pants, while Toujours au Danger is on the left leg, which is Ever into Peril in French.
The Doolittle Raiders were 80 pilots and crew of 16 B-25B Mitchell bombers who launched the Doolittle Raid April 18, 1942. Led by United States Army Air Force Lt. Col. James H. “Jimmy” Doolittle, the Raiders bombed selected targets in the Japanese capital of Tokyo and other military locations on the Japanese homeland. Planning for the Doolittle Raid began in January 1942, in response to the Dec. 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor. The plan featured 16 B-25B medium bombers, each with a crew of five, launched from the U.S. Navy aircraft carrier, USS Hornet (CV-8). Running low on fuel after the bombing, the Raiders had to ditch their planes at sea, bail out, or crash land in China. Most of the Dootlittle Raiders safely reached friendly forces and return to action. Lt. Col. Richard “Dick” Cole, Doolittle’s co-pilot in the lead B-25 during the mission and last surviving member of the Doolittle Raiders, passed away at the age of 103 April 9, 2019.
Doolittle Plane Nicknames
Serial Number -- Nickname
40-2270 -- Whiskey Pete
40-2298 -- The Green Hornet
40-2261 -- The Ruptured Duck
40-2303 -- Whirling Dervish
40-2249 -- Hari Kari-er
40-2278 -- Fickle Finger of Fate
40-2247 -- The Avenger
40-2267 -- TNT
40-2268 -- Bat Out of Hell
The following planes did not have nicknames: 40-2344, 40-2292, 40-2282, 40-2283, 40-2242, 40-2250, 40-2297
A special thank you to The National Museum of World War II Aviation who was kind enough to supply the B-25 used in the uniform photos.
Air Power Legacy Series History
-The Air Power Legacy Series began in the 2016 season with the football team wearing an alternate uniform to celebrate the Tiger Shark teeth nose-art which has been represented on multiple Air Force aircraft dating back to World War II. During the WWII era, fighter plane pilots were called “Flying Tigers” and were part of the U.S. Army Air Corps, which later became the Air Force. The helmets worn for the game featured a shark-teeth design like those painted on the aircraft.
-While 2016 focused on the past, the Falcons honored the present, and future, of air power in 2017 with the F-35 theme. The F-35 completed its first flight in 2006. In 2012, the F-35 program increased to 30 aircraft. In 2016, the F-35A was declared combat ready by Gen. Hawk Carlisle, class of 1978, the commander of the Air Combat Command. The helmet had five different designs. On one side of every helmet will be the familiar Air Force logo often seen on aircraft, which includes the lengthwise bars intersecting the roundel. On the other side was a decal representing one of the five Air Force F-35-A operational fighter squadrons in the Air Force.
-The team honored the AC-130 in 2018. The helmet featured the AC-130 on one side, plus squadron patches on the other. The AC-130 gunship is a heavily armed, long-endurance ground-attack variant of the C-130 Hercules transport fixed-wing aircraft. It carries a wide array of anti-ground-oriented weapons that are integrated with sophisticated sensors, navigation, and fire-control systems. Unlike other military fixed-wing aircraft, the AC-130 relies on visual targeting. Because its large profile and low operating altitudes (around 7,000 ft) make it an easy target, it usually flies close air support missions at night.
-Air Force honored the C-17, a large military transport in 2019. The C-17 commonly performs tactical and strategic airlift missions, transporting troops and cargo throughout the world; additional roles include medical evacuation and airdrop duties. The C-17 is designed to operate from runways as short as 3,500 ft (1,100 m) and as narrow as 90 ft (27 m).
-The Falcons honored the Tuskegee Airmen with the 2020 edition. The uniform was gray with black lettering. The chrome base gray helmet featured the P-51 aircraft flown by the Tuskegee Airmen in combat with signature red tails and nose that helped identify the group. The helmet featured the four squadron emblems for the 99th, 100th, 301st and 302nd fighter squadrons. The pants featured an authentic stenciled information graphic on the side. The custom nameplate on the jersey said Red Tails, inspired by hand-lettered names painted on the side of the P-51 aircraft.
-The 2021 edition honored the B-52 Stratofortress. The helmet was designed after the B-52 that flew in Operation Linebacker II. The Strategic Air Command adored the right check of the uniform while the name plate used the orange outline with airport codes for Anderson AFB, U Tapo and the 7th Bomber Wing patch to represent all former B-52 unites. The left pant leg featured 11 B-52 plane silhouettes representing the 11 days of bombing during the conflict. The right-side pant leg had the tail flash of the plane and the number on each player’s pant leg matches their uniform number for the first time in the history of the series.
-The 2022 edition honored the Space Force, which the U.S. Air Force Academy sends about 100 graduates to each year. The helmet featured the lightning bolt with a shared image between the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force, representing dominance, quick strike and precision. The jersey featured U.S. Space Force base patches on the left shoulder and a tonal United States flag on the right sleeve. The unit patches feature Space Base Delta 1 headquartered at Peterson Space Force Base and Space Base Delta 2 headquartered at Buckley Space Force Bases. The pants had a pair of blue vertical stripes with USSF down the middle in gray.
Although the Doolittle Raid of April 18, 1942, caused only minor damage, it forced the Japanese to recall combat forces for home defense, raised fears among the Japanese civilians, and boosted morale among Americans and our Allies abroad.
