Beschreibung:

Lot of 22 photographs and more than 100 pages of documents relating to the military career of Lt. Col. Thomas E. Collins, Jr. Lt. Col. Collins was a WWII fighter pilot with a distinguished post-war military career. Collins is also presumed to be the father of Thomas E. Collins, III, an Air Force pilot who was shot down over Vietnam in 1965 and spent over 7 years as a POW before returning home in 1973. Thomas E. Collins, Jr., was born in Lexington, Kentucky, on October 2, 1920. He entered the service on February 16, 1943, and served on active duty until January 5, 1947, during which time he served as a fighter pilot, Group Operations Officer, and Training Officer, and as a Director of Operations and Training for Meeks Field, Air Transport Command, based in Iceland. During his time as a fighter pilot he flew 165 combat missions against tactical targets in Germany and as an escort for bombers. He logged 1700 hours of flying time, of which 400 were combat hours. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and a Silver Star. Records and correspondence included in this collection are diverse, and predominantly relate to his post-war military career. Highlights of the collection include: a certificate of recognition honoring the memory of Thomas E. Collins and signed by President George H. W. Bush; a TLS, dated May 23, 1958, signed by Vice-President Richard Nixon commending the work of Col. Collins; and photographs of various military aircraft. Multiple photographs of Lt. Col. Collins are included in the collection as well.