Flying Officer Eugene Quimby "Red" Tobin (4 January 1917 – 7 September 1941) was an American pilot who flew with the
Royal Air Force during the
Battle of Britain in
World War II. He was one of 11 American pilots who flew with RAF
Fighter Command between 10 July and 31 October 1940, thereby qualifying for the Battle of Britain
clasp
Clasp, clasper or CLASP may refer to:
* Wrist clasp, a dressing accessory
* Folding clasp, a device used to close a watch strap
* Medal bar, an element in military decoration
* Fastener, a hardware device that mechanically joins objects together
* ...
to the
1939–45 campaign star.
Early life
Born in Salt Lake City, Utah, but raised from early childhood in
Los Angeles,
California, the son of Ignatius Quimby Tobin and Mary Alicia Tobin (née O'Fallon). Tobin initially came to Europe to fight on the side of Finland against the Soviet Union's invasion of that country, but hostilities had ceased before he arrived. He was already a qualified pilot, having learned to fly in the 1930s.
Tobin and
Andrew Mamedoff
Flight lieutenant Andrew Beck Mamedoff (12 August 19128 October 1941), known as Andy, was an American pilot who flew with the Royal Air Force during the Battle of Britain in World War II. He was one of 11 American pilots who flew with RAF Fight ...
had been flying friends at
Mines Field in California before the war.
Second World War
Tobin and his friends and fellow Americans
Andrew Mamedoff
Flight lieutenant Andrew Beck Mamedoff (12 August 19128 October 1941), known as Andy, was an American pilot who flew with the Royal Air Force during the Battle of Britain in World War II. He was one of 11 American pilots who flew with RAF Fight ...
and
Vernon Keogh
Pilot Officer Vernon Charles "Shorty" Keough (8 June 1911 – 15 February 1941) was an American pilot who flew with the Royal Air Force during the Battle of Britain in World War II. He was one of 11 American pilots who flew with RAF Fighter ...
were among 32 pilots recruited by American soldier of fortune
Charles Sweeny to join the
French Air Force
The French Air and Space Force (AAE) (french: Armée de l'air et de l'espace, ) is the air and space force of the French Armed Forces. It was the first military aviation force in history, formed in 1909 as the , a service arm of the French Army; ...
. However, by the time they reached France,
Germany had already invaded the country. The trio made their way to England and joined the
Royal Air Force in 1940. (Of the rest of Sweeny's recruits, four were killed, 11 were taken prisoner, and two others reached England.)
On 8 August 1940 Tobin was posted to
No. 609 Squadron RAF at
Middle Wallop airfield. He flew his first mission on 16 August 1940. He flew many missions during the height of the
Battle of Britain in August and September. He was credited with two shared kills – a
Bf 110 on 25 August and a
Do 17
The Dornier Do 17 is a twin-engined light bomber produced by Dornier Flugzeugwerke for the German Luftwaffe during World War II. Designed in the early 1930s as a ''Schnellbomber'' ("fast bomber") intended to be fast enough to outrun opposing air ...
on 15 September.
He was posted to
RAF Kirton in Lindsey in
Lincolnshire on 18 September 1940 and was a founding member of the
No. 71 'Eagle' Squadron along with
Art Donahue, Andrew Mamedoff and Vernon Keogh.
After arriving in Britain Tobin had been diagnosed with
lupus
Lupus, technically known as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), is an autoimmune disease in which the body's immune system mistakenly attacks healthy tissue in many parts of the body. Symptoms vary among people and may be mild to severe. Comm ...
which at the time was a fatal disease, but kept his illness a secret so he could continue to fly for the RAF.
Death
On 7 September 1941, Tobin was killed in combat with
Bf 109's of
JG 26 on 71 Squadron's first sweep over northern France, one of three
Spitfires shot down.
He crashed into a hillside near
Boulogne-sur-Mer and was buried in Boulogne Eastern Cemetery, France. He was 24 years old.
See also
*
Eagle Squadrons
*
List of RAF aircrew in the Battle of Britain
*
Non-British personnel in the RAF during the Battle of Britain
References
* Klaus Ulrich Spiegel: "Quel canto mi conquide" - Stuttgart Spinto in his Era - HAfG Disc Edition - Hamburger Archiv
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tobin
1917 births
1941 deaths
American expatriates in France
American expatriates in the United Kingdom
American Royal Air Force pilots of World War II
Aviators killed by being shot down
Royal Air Force personnel killed in World War II
French Air and Space Force personnel
People from Los Angeles
The Few
People with lupus
French military personnel of World War II