Sims, Jack Ahren, Col

Deceased
 
 Service Photo   Service Details
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Last Rank
Colonel
Last Primary AFSC/MOS
1021A-Pilot
Last AFSC Group
Aircrew
Primary Unit
1942-1943, AAF MOS 1082, 12th Air Force
Service Years
1940 - 1968
Officer srcset=
Colonel

 Last Photo   Personal Details 

17 kb


Home State
Michigan
Michigan
Year of Birth
1919
 
This Military Service Page was created/owned by SSgt Robert Bruce McClelland, Jr. to remember Sims, Jack Ahren, Col USAF(Ret).

If you knew or served with this Airman and have additional information or photos to support this Page, please leave a message for the Page Administrator(s) HERE.
 
Contact Info
Home Town
Kalamazoo, Michigan
Last Address
Naples, Florida
Date of Passing
Jun 09, 2007
 
Location of Interment
Naples Memorial Gardens Cemetery - North Naples, Florida
Wall/Plot Coordinates
Veterans Field of Honor

 Official Badges 

Headquarters Air Force Air Force Retired


 Unofficial Badges 

Cold War Medal Doolittle Tokyo Raiders Gold Medal




 Additional Information
Last Known Activity:

He was the co-pilot in crew #14 on the Doolittle Raid.  After the raid he flew combat missions in India, North Africa, and Europe.  After the war he stayed in the USAAF and USAF until he retired Jul 31, 1968.  

His DFC (1st of 2) citation:
Awarded for actions during World War II
The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 2, 1926, takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Flying Cross to First Lieutenant (Air Corps) Jack A. Sims (ASN: 0-421340), United States Army Air Forces, for extraordinary achievement as Co-Pilot of a B-25 Bomber of the 1st Special Aviation Project (Doolittle Raider Force), while participating in a highly destructive raid on the Japanese mainland on 18 April 1942. Lieutenant Sims with 79 other officers and enlisted men volunteered for this mission knowing full well that the chances of survival were extremely remote, and executed his part in it with great skill and daring. This achievement reflects high credit on himself and the military service.

Action Date: April 18, 1942

Service: Army Air Forces

Rank: First Lieutenant

Company: 1st Special Aviation Project

Division: Doolittle Tokyo Raider Force

Crew #14 (Plane #40-2297, target Nagoya): 89th Recon Sq. L-R: 

Lt. James H. Macia Jr., navigator/bombardier; 

Maj. John A. Hilger, pilot; 

SSgt. Jacob Eierman, flight engineer; 

Lt. Jack A. Sims, copilot; SSgt. Edwin V. Bain, radio op/gunner. (U.S. Air Force photo)

  

 

 

   
Other Comments:

Sources:
http://veterantributes.org/TributeDetail.php?recordID=351
http://www.doolittleraider.com/raiders/sims.htm
http://www.cieldegloire.com/batailles_tokyo_e14.php#2
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1849578/posts
http://www.anakstore.com/2011/01/coonel-jack-a-sims/
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=19806126
http://valor.militarytimes.com/recipient.php?recipientid=30396

His 2nd DFC citation reads:
For extraordinary achievement while participating in aerial flight as pilot of a B-26 type aircraft. During his many combat missions, Major Sims has distinguished himself through his outstanding professional skill and superior leadership. On 21 August 1943, as flight commander, he led his group in an attack on the marshalling yards at Villa Literno, Italy. As the unescorted bombers began their run over the target, they were repeatedly attacked by a force of seventy-five enemy fighters, many of which concentrated their fire on Major Sims' aircraft in an attempt to throw the formation off course. When the attacks continued in intensity over the target, Major Sims expertly directed his group into the tightest possible formation, from which the bombers completed a highly successful run. So accurate was his leadership that the yards were rendered unserviceable, and heavy damage was done to rolling stock and tracks throughout the entire area. Turning from the target in the face of further fighter attacks, he coolly aligned his group into a formation of squadrons in trail. During an aerial battle lasting twenty minutes, his gunners shot down twenty-one enemy planes and were credited with probably destroying or damaging eleven more. Major Sims' proficiency and faithfulness in discharging his responsibilities have reflected great credit upon himself and the Armed Forces of the United States.

   

  1942-1943, AAF MOS 1082, 458th Bombardment Group, Heavy

Captain
From Month/Year
June / 1942
To Month/Year
November / 1943
Unit
458th Bombardment Group, Heavy Unit Page
Rank
Captain
AFSC/MOS
AAF MOS 1082-Pilot, B-26
Base, Station or City
FL, England, North Africa, Italy
State/Country
Not Specified
   
 Patch
 458th Bombardment Group, Heavy Details

458th Bombardment Group, Heavy

Assigned 8th AAF: January 1944





MIZPAH

Wing/Command Assignment

2 BD, 96 CBW 11 Jan 1944 
2 AD, 96 CBW 1 Jan 1945 


''SPOTTED APE''






''THE CATS...''




Combat Aircraft:

B-24H 
B-24J 
B-24L 
B-24M 
 

Stations

HORSHAM ST. FAITHS: 29 January 1944 - 3 July 1945
 

Group COs

Col James H. Isbell 16 Dec. 1943 - 9 Mar. 1945.
Col Allen F. Herzberg 10 Mar. 1945 - 18 Jun. 1945.

First Mission: 24 Feb 1944 
Last Mission: 25 Apr 1945 
Missions: 240 
Total Sorties: 5,759 
Total Bomb Tonnage: 13,204 Tons 
Aircraft MIA: 47
 

Major Awards:

None
 

Claims to Fame


Carried out operational test of Azon radio-controlled bomb for OAF.

Early History:

Activated on 1 July 1943 at Wendover Field, Utah. Assembly began at Gowen Field, Idaho, on 28 July 1943. The unit trained there until early September 1943 then moved to Kearns Field, Utah. On 31 October 1943 the unit moved to train at Tonopah AAFd, Nev. The ground unit moved to the port of embarkation on the 29th of December 1943. The aircraft flew to the UK via the southern ferry route. The ground unit sailed from New York on USS Florence Nightingale on the 18 January 1944.
 

Subsequent History:

Redeployed to the US in June 1945. The aircraft left Horsham St. Faiths on the 14 June 1945. The ground unit sailed on the Queen Mary from Greenock on the 6 July 1945, arriving in New York on the 11 July 1945. The group was established at Walker AAFd, Kansas on the 25 July 1945, and later at March Field, Ca. to train as a B-29 unit, but with end of war in Pacific, the Group was inactivated on the 17 October 1945.

Type
Bomber
 
Parent Unit
Bombardment Units
Strength
Group
Created/Owned By
Not Specified
   

Last Updated: Dec 10, 2019
   
   
Yearbook
 
My Photos For This Unit
442nd Bomb Sq. patch
5 Members Also There at Same Time
458th Bombardment Group, Heavy

Rogers, Guy C., 2nd Lt, (1942-1945) A23 AAF MOS 1092 Second Lieutenant
Cabot, Gerald, SSgt, (1943-1945) A07 AAF MOS 611 Staff Sergeant
Gabay, Eugene, Sgt, (1942-1945) A07 AAF MOS 611 Staff Sergeant
Picard, Norman J., Sgt, (1943-1944) A07 AAF MOS 611 Sergeant
Abshire, Wilbert, SSgt, (1943-1944) Sergeant

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