The "Gee Bee's" is one of the most iconic American race plane of the thirties. With its rounded compact boby designed by the Granville brothers, its short tail and minimal wingspan it looked like a flying barrel. However, the "Gee bee" could be a succesfull racer when it was flown by talented pilots. Jimmy Doolittle had both talent and experience. He had already won the Schneider trophy in 1925 when he competed succesfully for the Thompson Trophy in 1932.