Jimmy Stewart was inducted into the US Army Air Corps on 22 March 1941, flew B-24 bombers over Europe, and is credited with about 20 combat missions. He became…
He won Best Actor on 27 February 1941 for a 1940 film. He was the only nominee who attended.
He had been rejected for low weight in November 1940. He was inducted as a private on 22 March 1941.
Commissioned on 1 January 1942, he spent over a year training other pilots, including on the B-17.
He arrived in November 1943 with the 703rd Bomb Squadron of the 445th Bomb Group.
The 445th flew its first mission on 13 December 1943, not March 1944 as some summaries say.
He became operations officer of the 453rd. Most sources say about 20 missions, but counts differ.
He was promoted to colonel on 29 March 1945, four years after induction as a private.
He was promoted to brigadier general on 23 July 1959 and retired on 31 May 1968 after 27 years.
President Reagan presented the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Stewart died on 2 July 1997, aged 89.
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