Benjamin Christian Zimmermann is an American pastor, former politician, retired

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

pilot, and commercial pilot from Idaho. Zimmermann was a Republican member of the

Idaho House of Representatives The Idaho House of Representatives is the lower chamber of the Idaho Legislature. It consists of 70 representatives elected to two-year terms. The state is divided into 35 districts, each of which elects two representatives to separate seats. ...

Early life

On April 14, 1940, Zimmermann was born in Shasi,

Hubei Province Hubei is a province in Central China. It has the seventh-largest economy among Chinese provinces, the second-largest within Central China, and the third-largest among inland provinces. Its provincial capital at Wuhan serves as a major politi ...

, China. Zimmermann's parents were Lutheran missionaries in China. Zimmermann has a sister, Katharine.

Education

Zimmermann attended

Boise State University Boise State University (BSU) is a Public university, public research university in Boise, Idaho, United States. Founded in 1932 by the Episcopal Church (United States), Episcopal Church, it became an independent junior college in 1934 and has b ...

and Iowa State University. In 1980, Zimmermann earned a master of divinity degree from Concordia Seminary in

Clayton, Missouri Clayton is a city in and the county seat of St. Louis County, Missouri, and borders the independent city of St. Louis. The population was 17,355 at the 2020 census. Organized in 1877, the city was named after Ralph Clayton, a citizen who donated ...

. In 1985, Zimmermann earned a degree from

National Defense University National Defence (or Defense) University (or College) may refer to: :''Alphabetical by country'' University * Marshal Fahim National Defense University, Afghanistan * National Defense University (Azerbaijan) * People's Liberation Army National Defe ...

Career

In military, in 1959, Zimmermann served as an officer and a pilot in the US Air Force and Air National Guard and Reserve, until 1989. Zimmermann is a lieutenant colonel. In 1968, Zimmermann became a commercial pilot for

Trans World Airlines Trans World Airlines (TWA) was a major airline in the United States that operated from 1930 until it was acquired by American Airlines in 2001. It was formed as Transcontinental & Western Air to operate a route from New York City to Los Angeles ...

, until his retirement in May 1995. In 1980, Zimmermann became a Lutheran minister, and is a pastor in Idaho. On June 14, 1985, as a flight engineer of

TWA Flight 847 TWA Flight 847 was a regularly scheduled Trans World Airlines flight from Cairo to San Diego with en route stops in Athens, Rome, Boston, and Los Angeles. On the morning of June 14, 1985, Flight 847 was hijacked soon after take off from Athens. ...

, his airplane was hijacked by Lebanese Shiite Muslims on a flight from

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

, Greece to

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

, Italy. The airplane eventually landed in Beirut. Zimmermann survived a beating at the hands of the hijackers. Eventually, most of the passengers and crew members were released. Zimmermann returned to

Boise, Idaho Boise ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Idaho, most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, there were 235,685 people residing in the city. Loca ...

, on July 4, 1985. In November 1985, Zimmermann became the author of ''Hostage in a Hostage World: Hope Aboard Hijacked TWA 847''. In May 1995, Zimmermann became a city council member of Cascade, Idaho, and became council president. On November 5, 1996, Zimmermann won the election and became a Republican member of

for District 8, seat A. Zimmermann defeated Gayle Wilde with 88.6% of the votes. On November 3, 1998, as an incumbent, Zimmermann won the election unopposed and continued serving District 8, seat A. In April 2014, at age 74, Zimmermann became a pastor of Pilgrim Lutheran Church in Ontario.

Awards

* 1986 Silver Medillion award, presented by Boise State University

Personal life

Zimmermann's wife is Melvia Kahale. They have three children. Zimmermann and his family live in Cascade, Idaho.

References

External links

B. Christian Zimmerman at linkedin.com

B. Christian Zimmerman at airandspace.si.edu

The Taking of Flight 847: The Uli Derickson Story (1988) at IMDb
(Ben Zimmerman)
Benjamin Zimmerman at washingtonpost.com (June 16, 1985)

Benjamin Zimmerman image at historicimages.com

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$353 million Judgement against Iran
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zimmermann, Christian 1940 births Living people 20th-century Lutheran clergy Concordia Theological Seminary alumni Hijacking survivors Republican Party members of the Idaho House of Representatives United States Air Force officers American expatriates in China Boise State University alumni People from Jingzhou Trans World Airlines people Military personnel from Idaho United States Air Force reservists 20th-century members of the Idaho Legislature