The
Doolittle Raid, also known as the
Tokyo Raid, on Saturday, April 18, 1942, was an
air raid by the
United States of America on the Japanese capital
Tokyo and other places on
Honshu island during World War II, the first air raid to strike the
Japanese Home Islands. It demonstrated that Japan itself was vulnerable to American air attack, served as retaliation for the Japanese
attack on Pearl Harbor on Sunday, December 7, 1941, and provided an important boost to American
morale while damaging Japanese morale. The raid was planned and led by
Lieutenant Colonel James Harold "Jimmy" Doolittle,
United States Army Air Forces.