And then there was one

[dirtysidedown430]

Last Doolittle Raider at reunion. Wonder what happened to the bottle.

[JohnTerrell]

Dick Cole, Ed Saylor and David Thatcher all split the bottle of cognac at a USAF Museum ceremony back in November 2013. The bottle remains displayed with the case of goblets at the USAF Museum.

[Lon Moer]

Was anybody at the fly over today at Dayton?

Who was in the fly over?

[JohnTerrell]

I wasn't there, but the gathering/flyover at Dayton consisted of 11 B-25's, those being - "Miss Mitchell", "Betty's Dream", "Panchito", "Miss Hap", "Semper Fi", "Devil Dog", "Champaign Gal", "Georgie's Gal", "Yankee Warrior", "Show Me", and "Barbie III". The Mid America Flight Museum's B-25 "God and Country" made it to Urbana together with the 11 others, but it wasn't able to participate in the Dayton gathering/flyover.

[garbs]

It was a diamond of four followed by a V of three and 4 singles. Then the lead group came back in a missing man. Couldn't tell who did the pull as they were right overhead.

The story on the bottle is that it was given to Doolittle many years ago and stored at his house. When the group was large they consumed many bottles of various cognacs. This particular bottle was rediscovered when Doolittle and his wife moved out of the only house they ever owned and he incorporated it into the silver goblet collection at that time. By then, only a part bottle was consumed at reunions, and they decided to open this one (bottled the year Doolittle was born) when they got down to four surviving raiders. Movie only showed 3 taking part.

[Flying Pencil]

[Lon Moer]

Not my pictures.

[Ken]

Then there is the story about the bottle being housed at the AF Academy and being opened & ruined. Followed by the story that the bottle there was never the original, just a stand-in. And the other story that the one in the Museum is also a stand-in. It gets a bit confusing to follow.

Ken

[mike furline]

And 70 years ago in Miami. April 18-21, 1947

[garbs]

Then there is the story about the bottle being housed at the AF Academy and being opened & ruined. Followed by the story that the bottle there was never the original, just a stand-in. And the other story that the one in the Museum is also a stand-in. It gets a bit confusing to follow.

Ken

The version I relayed was told by Cole's daughter and Thatcher's son at the screening of the Documentary that was shown at the NMUSAF theater the night of the memorial. I have no further provenance to offer.

[Warbirdnerd]

Not my pictures.

What in the world is that contraption in front of the port a potty? A new North Korean AA missile?

[67N20]

Maybe they help secure the porta pottie from moving in the wind?

[Courier Sportster]

flameout-outhouse

[Fouga23]

fart powered afterburner

[WIXerGreg]

Turbine powered exhaust fans.