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Stewart was the first Hollywood actor to join. It was the start of a 27-year career in the Army and then the Air Force. When a producer asked him why he would give up his screen career for the ...
James Maitland Stewart (May 20, 1908 – July 2, 1997) was an American actor. Known for his distinctive drawl and everyman screen persona, Stewart's film career spanned 80 films from 1935 to 1991. With the strong morality, which he portrayed both on and off the screen, he epitomized the "American ideal" in the mid-twentieth century.
- Jimmy Stewart: Actor and Aviator
- Stewart Enlists
- An Uncommon Commision
- Stewart on The Sidelines
- Transferred to A Combat Group Command Position
- From Sioux City to Great Britain
- First Combat Missions of The 445th
- Stewart’s Crucial Decision at Ludwigshafen
- “Big Week”
- Stewart’s Stardom Within The Air Corps
James Maitland Stewart was a native of Indiana, Pennsylvania, where his father ran a hardware store, which makes him a true product of Main Street America. Indiana is far different from Philadelphia or even nearby Pittsburgh. Located in western Pennsylvania, it lies in a region with close ties to the American frontier of the early 1800s. Like many ...
By the spring of 1941, Stewart was a successful movie star and an accomplished pilot with a commercial license and more than 300 hours in his logbook. He owned his own airplane, a Stinson 105, and was an investor in Thunderbird Field, a new venture in Phoenix that had a contract to train Army pilots. Had he waited until after Pearl Harbor to enlist...
Just how Stewart received his aeronautical rating as a military pilot is a mystery. At age 32 when he was drafted, he was beyond the cutoff age of 27 for aviation cadet training. He was a college graduate, however, from one of the country’s most prestigious schools, and was thus eligible for an officer’s commission. He also was a rated commercial p...
Although Stewart had his heart set on becoming a combat pilot, the Army was less enthusiastic about using a man of his notoriety in a combat role. He was more valuable as a recruiting tool. Shortly after he was commissioned, he was called to Washington, D.C., to attend President Franklin Roosevelt’s March of Dimes rally and make the rounds of a num...
After he had been at Boise for several months, a rumor reached Stewart’s ears that he was going to be taken off flying status and reassigned to the audiovisual service. Another rumor was that he was going to be sent on a perpetual War Bond tour. The rumors were more than Stewart could take. Up to this point he had not tried to pull rank, position, ...
As a squadron operations officer, Stewart was responsible for his new unit’s aircrews. His role was to supervise the assignment and training of the squadron’s aircrew personnel and to ensure that they were all proficient. If a crew had problems, it was up to the operations officer to solve them or reassign crewmembers to make up effective crews. St...
After their arrival at Tibenham, the men of the 445th did not go right into combat. It was November 1943, and the Army Air Forces had been in combat for almost two years, during which it had learned many lessons. One of the lessons was that newly arrived groups needed a shakedown period of theater indoctrination before beginning operational mission...
It was on the January 7, 1944, mission to Ludwigshafen that Stewart came to the attention of superior officers above his group. Stewart was again leading the group. As they were departing the target area, he realized that the group he was following, the 389th Bomb Group, was 30 degrees off course. He called the other group lead and informed him of ...
Many Eighth Air Force crewmen came to believe that Doolittle was using them to get his name in the papers. The intensity of combat was increasing, and casualties among the bomber crews were mounting. During their first 21 days in combat the 445th lost six crews, an average of two a week. Group personnel saw 61 of their comrades listed as missing in...
During three months in combat, Stewart had achieved a reputation not only in his squadron but also in the group and wing. To many of the combat crews he had become a lucky charm. Missions on which he led either the squadron, the group, or the wing seemed to be successful, in that bombing results were usually good and casualties were generally light...
James Maitland Stewart (Jimmy) died on July 2, 1997. He will be remembered as a talented actor, brave military hero, loving husband, good father, and a giant among men. He leaves a legacy of honesty, hard work, and strong values. He was a good man, a loyal citizen, and had a wonderful life. He indeed earned his wings!
May 21, 2021 · It was the fifth day of the Eighth Air Force’s Big Week in February 1944, and Stewart was on his 10th combat mission in the air as either a group, wing, or squadron leader. This is what he left ...
Dec 26, 2023 · He served in World War II as a pilot in the Army Air Corps and then returned to Hollywood, an even better actor to resume his career. Major Jimmy Stewart confers with a B-24 crew member. Photo courtesy of nationalmuseum.af.mil. The US entered World War II in 1941. Stewart’s patriotism took full hold and he joined the Army Air Corps as a pilot.
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Aug 4, 2021 · On Jan. 19, 1942, he successfully passed the pilot training program and was commissioned second lieutenant. Maj. Jimmy Stewart confers with a B-24 crew member. Stewart became known as a lucky pilot for always bringing his crew home safely. U.S. Air Force photo.
