Had Been One Of The Doolittle Raiders Who Attacked Tokyo In 1942

One of the last of the 80 men to climb aboard 16 B-25 bombers and launch from an aircraft carrier in April 1942 to attack Tokyo has gone west. ANN has learned that Lt. Col. Robert Hite passed away Sunday Morning at a nursing home in Nashville, TN.

The Associated Press reports that Hite's death was confirmed by his son Wallace.

Hite had been among eight of the Raiders to be captured by the Japanese and imprisoned for 40 months after the raid. Three others were executed. He was freed by American Troops in 1945, and returned to active duty in 1951, according to the report.

Hite was one of only three surviving members of the Doolittle Raiders. The raid did little damage to Tokyo, but it was a major boost to U.S. moral, and the shook the confidence of the Japanese government, causing it to shift strategies only five months after the attack on Pearl Harbor.

The unit will be honored April 15 with the presentation of a Congressional Gold Medal in Washington, D.C. A second recognition will be held April 18 ... the 73rd anniversary of the raid ... in which the medal will be presented to the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force.

(Image from file)

FMI: www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/