Eugene Quimby Tobin
Military ROLL OF HONOURGene Tobin was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, on 4 January 1917, the son of Ignatius Quimby Tobin and Mary Alicia Tobin. He had two older sisters Helen, and Mary. The Tobin family lived in Salt Lake, where their father was involved in a mining interest, until Gene’s mother fell ill with the “Spanish” Flu, and she subsequently contracted Tuberculosis.
During a remission in his mother's illness, the Tobins returned to Denver to live with members of the maternal (Harrington) family, and it was in Denver where Gene’s mother died c. 1920. Tobin's father, Quimby, left the two girls with relatives in Denver, and left for Los Angeles with Gene, never to return; Gene was a mere toddler at the time, and quite possibly never knew he was born in Salt Lake.
Gene 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 had been flying friends at Mines Field in California before the war.
He joined the French Air Force towards the end of the Battle of France, but as France fell he came to England with his friends and fellow Americans Andrew Mamedoff and Vernon Keogh and joined the Royal Air Force in 1940.
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' – an Bf 110 on 25 August and a Do17 on 15 September.
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 to the 1939–45 campaign star.
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.
After arriving in Britain, Tobin had been diagnosed with lupus which at the time was a fatal disease, but kept his illness a secret so he could continue to fly for the RAF.
On 7 September 1941, Tobin was killed in combat with Bf 109's of JG 26 on No. 71 Squadron's first sweep over northern France, in Spitfire Mk Vb W3801, one of three Spitfires shot down. He crashed into a hillside near Boulogne-sur-Mer. He was 24 years old.
He is buried in Boulogne Eastern Cemetery, France.
Connections
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Units served with
- Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
- Type Category: Fighter
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: Spitfire
- Nicknames: Popocatapetl I
- Unit: No 71 'Eagle' Squadron
Places
- Site type: Airfield
Events
Event | Location | Date | Description |
---|---|---|---|
Born |
Salt Lake City, UT, USA | 4 January 1917 | Son of Ignatius Quimby and Mary Alicia Tobin. |
Other Battle of Britain Veteran |
Great Britain, United Kingdom | 10 July 1940 - 31 October 1940 | 1 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 to the 1939–45 campaign star. |
Other Posted 609 Sqn |
AAC Middle Wallop, Stockbridge, Hampshire SO20, UK | 8 August 1940 | Posted to No. 609 Squadron RAF at Middle Wallop airfield. |
Other On Ops |
16 August 1940 | Flew his first operational mission on 16 August 1940. | |
Other Credited 2 shared kills |
15 September 1940 | Credited with two shared 'kills' – an Bf 110 on 25 August and a Do17 on 15 September. | |
Other Posted to No. 71 'Eagle' Sqn |
Kirton in Lindsey, Gainsborough, North Lincolnshire DN21, UK | 18 September 1940 | Posted to RAF Kirton in Lindsey in Lincolnshire on 18 September 1940 and was a founding member of the No. 71 'Eagle' Squadron. |
Died |
Boulogne-sur-Mer, France | 7 September 1941 | 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, in Spitfire Mk Vb W3801, one of three Spitfires shot down. He crashed into a hillside near Boulogne-sur-Mer. He was 24 years old. Killed in Action (KIA). |
Other Joined the French AF |
France | He joined the French Air Force towards the end of the Battle of France. | |
Other Joined RAF |
England, UK | Joined the Royal Air Force in 1940. | |
Buried |
Terlincthun British War Cemetery, Rue de l'Aiglon, 62126 Wimille, France | Re-interred Terlincthun British War Cemetery, France. |
Revisions
Corrected details of Gene Tobin's early life after correspondence with Dr. Richard W. Cross, Gene Tobin's nephew.
Richard is the son of Mary Tobin (Cross), who is still alive at the age of 101, and still living in Denver, Colorado.
Combat Chronology / Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia