B-25 Mitchell

B-25 Mitchell. . , The B-25 medium bomber, named for General Billy Mitchell, was one of America's most famous airplanes of world war two. It was the type used by General Doolittle for the "Tokyo Raid" on April 18, 1942. Subsequently, it saw duty in every combat arena, being flown by the British, Dutch, Chinese, Russians and Australians in addition to our own US Forces., Originally designed the NA-40 (an Attack bomber), the NA-40 was modified into the NA-62 (a Medium bomber) and redesignated the B-25. The B-25A first flew on February 1941, the aircraft had several modifications done, and when the last B-25J completed a total of 9,816 were produced. Although the aircraft was originally designed for level bombing at medium altitudes, it was used extensively in the Pacific arena for treetop level bombing and strafing., This B-25J S/N 44-30854 is being depicted as B-25B S/N 40-2344 flown by General (then LtCol) James H. Doolittle during the "Tokyo Raid" mission. The Doolittle Raiders trained for their secret mission at Eglin Field (now Eglin AFB), FL. This aircraft was presented to the Air Force Armament Museum by the cities of Valparaiso and Niceville, FL., Specifications , Manufacturer North American Aircraft , Thrust Two , Wright R-2600-9 Radial engines rated at 1700 hp each , Length 52 ft 11 in , Height 15 ft 9 in , Wingspan 67 ft 8 in , Weight 20,000 lbs Empty / 31,000 lbs Max , Speed 300 mph Max / 230 mph Cruise , Range 2000 Miles w/3000 lbs of bombs , Ceiling 25,000 ft , Armament One , 30 Cal. machine gun and Two , 50 Cal. machine guns in each turret and up to 5000 lbs of bombs , This aircraft is on loan from the National Museum of the United States Air Force