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Edward York was one of the 80 airmen who, under the leadership of Jimmy Doolittle, disembarked from the U.S.S. Hornet in the first bombing raid over Tokyo in World War II. Following the raid, due to mechanical problems, his aircraft had insufficient fuel to reach China and landed at a field near Vladivostok, Russia. There, the neutral Soviets confiscated the bomber and interned the crew until they subsequently escaped to Persia and returned home in May 1943. Thereafter he served with a B-17 unit in Italy.
Pilot
Cpt.
Edward J. Ski York
Batavia, NY
Aug 31, 1984
Co-Pilot
Lt.
Robert G. Emmens
Medford, OR
Apr 02, 1992
Nav./Bomb.
Lt.
Nolan Anderson Herndon
Greenville, TX
Oct 7, 2007
Engineer
Sgt.
Theodore H. Laban
Kenosha, WI
Sep 16, 1978
Gunner
Sgt.
David William Pohl
Boston, MA
Feb 18, 1999
Other Comments:
Distinguished Flying Cross
The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 2, 1926, takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Flying Cross to Captain (Air Corps) Edward J. York (ASN: 0-211511), United States Army Air Forces, for extraordinary achievement as Pilot of a B-25 Bomber of the 1st Special Aviation Project (Doolittle Raider Force), while participating in a highly destructive raid on the Japanese mainland on 18 April 1942. Captain York with 79 other officers and enlisted men volunteered for this mission knowing full well that the chances of survival were extremely remote, and executed his part in it with great skill and daring. This achievement reflects high credit on himself and the military service.
WWII - European Theater of Operations/Air Offensive, Europe Campaign (1942-44)
From Month/Year
July / 1942
To Month/Year
June / 1944
Description (Air Offensive, Europe Campaign 4 July 1942 to 5 June 1944) Pre-war doctrine had held that waves of bombers hitting enemy cities would cause mass panic and the rapid collapse of the enemy. As a result, the Royal Air Force had built up a large strategic bomber force. By way of contrast, Nazi German air force doctrine was almost totally dedicated to supporting the army. Therefore, German bombers were smaller than their British equivalents, and Germany never developed a fully successful four engined heavy bomber equivalent to the Lancaster or B-17, with only the similarly sized Heinkel He 177 placed into production and made operational for such duties with the Luftwaffe in the later war years.
The main concentration of German raids on British cities was from September 7, 1940 until May 10, 1941 in the most famous air battle of all time, known as the Battle of Britain. Facing odds of four against one the RAF held off the mighty Luftwaffe forcing Hermann Wilhelm Göring to withdraw his forces and more importantly indefinitely postpone invasion plans. This proved the first major turning point of the War. After that most of the strength of the Luftwaffe was diverted to the war against the Soviet Union leaving German cities vulnerable to British and later American air bombings. As a result of the victory, Great Britain was used by U.S and other Allied forces as a base from which to begin the D-Day landings in June 1944 and the liberation of Nazi-occupied Western Europe.
From 1942 onwards, the efforts of Bomber Command were supplemented by the Eighth Air Force of the United States Army Air Forces, U.S. Army Air Forces units being deployed to England to join the assault on mainland Europe on July 4, 1942. Bomber Command raided by night and the US forces by day.
