A few years back (probably more than a few) the pilot who took off right after Doolittle said he watched JD’s plane drop almost out of sight after it left the deck, then slowly gain altitude. He said he wasn’t scared, except about not wanting to do worse than the boss. What a great group!
http://www.youtube.com/results?q=doolittle+raid+pilot+interview&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=w1
http://www.google.com/search?q=doolittle+raid+pilot+interview