Thomas Marshall Tilley, Colonel USAF, (Retired)
d. September 17, 2011
Thomas Marshall Tilley, Colonel USAF, (Retired)
Thomas Marshall Tilley, Colonel USAF, (Retired)
Augusta, GA-Thomas M. Tilley, age 93, joined the “Angel Flight” on Saturday, September 17, 2011 in Augusta, GA. Burial will be in the historic Oakwood Cemetery in Raleigh, NC on Monday, September 19, 2011 at 1:00 P.M. Memorial graveside services will include full military honors. He was a member of the First Baptist Church of Durham, NC.
Tom entered the Army Air Corps as a flying cadet in April 1941, and earned his wings five days after the Pearl Harbor attack. He was assigned to the 57th fighter squadron and went to war with them in 1942. The 57th was equipped with P-40F Warhawks. The squadron flew their P-40s off the U.S.S. Ranger, which was the only time (other than the Doolittle raid on Tokyo) that Air Force pilots ever took off from a Navy carrier. In North Africa they supported the British Eighth Army in their fight against the German Afrika Corps from El Alemein, Egypt, to Tunis, Tunisia, where the Germans were forced from Africa in May 1943. Colonel Tilley flew 70 combat missions during this tour.
Tom attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and North Carolina State University at Raleigh, where he graduated in 1948 with a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering with an Aeronautical option.
Tom served in a variety of fighter pilot assignments. During the 1950s, he commanded 2 fighter pilot squadrons of F-102s in the Air Defense Command. In 1960, he was assigned to the Northern Air Defense Command (NORAD) in Colorado Springs, CO. Later he served as vice commander of the Chicago Air Defense Sector at Madison, WI, before returning to Alaska for a second tour in 1965, where he served as Director of Air Defense, and later as Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations for the Alaskan Air Command. He returned to Colorado Springs to the Air Defense Command as Chief of Tactical Evaluation until his retirement in 1970. Colonel Tilley was a command pilot with 4500 flying hours. He flew most of the air force fighters, including the P-35, P-40, P-51, and the F-102. His decorations include the Legion of Merit with oak leaf cluster, Distinguished Flying Cross, Air medal with 2 oak leaf clusters, Joint Service Commendation Medal, Air Force Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster, and the Distinguished Unit Citation with two oak leaf clusters. He was a member of the Order of the Daedalians, an organization of military pilots. After retirement, he worked for the University of Northern Colorado administering their graduate programs for Colorado Springs from 1973-1983.
Tom was a wonderful husband, father, and friend, and he will be greatly missed by all who knew and loved him. He will always be remembered for his kind spirit, gentle soul, and heart-warming smile. Survivors include Mary Tilley, his beloved wife of 69 years, his two daughters, Jane Tilley Barton (Rocky) of Augusta, GA, Nancy Tilley Avery of Atlanta, GA, grandson T.J. Barton (Christy), and two great grandsons, Marshall and Andrew Barton, of Augusta, GA. The family would like to express their sincere gratitude to Regina Jackson and Belinda Leverett for their loving and professional care.
If so desired, contributions may be made to the Wounded Warrior Project, Attn: Advanced Guard, 4899 Belfort Rd., Suite 300, Jacksonville, FL 32256.
Thomas Poteet & Son Funeral Directors, 214 Davis Rd., Augusta, GA 30907 (706) 364-8484. Please sign the guestbook at www.thomaspoteet.com
Augusta, GA-Thomas M. Tilley, age 93, joined the “Angel Flight” on Saturday, September 17, 2011 in Augusta, GA. Burial will be in the historic Oakwood Cemetery in Raleigh, NC on Monday, September 19, 2011 at 1:00 P.M. Memorial graveside services will include full military honors. He was a member of the First Baptist Church of Durham, NC.
Tom entered the Army Air Corps as a flying cadet in April 1941, and earned his wings five days after the Pearl Harbor attack. He was assigned to the 57th fighter squadron and went to war with them in 1942. The 57th was equipped with P-40F Warhawks. The squadron flew their P-40s off the U.S.S. Ranger, which was the only time (other than the Doolittle raid on Tokyo) that Air Force pilots ever took off from a Navy carrier. In North Africa they supported the British Eighth Army in their fight against the German Afrika Corps from El Alemein, Egypt, to Tunis, Tunisia, where the Germans were forced from Africa in May 1943. Colonel Tilley flew 70 combat missions during this tour.
Tom attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and North Carolina State University at Raleigh, where he graduated in 1948 with a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering with an Aeronautical option.
Tom served in a variety of fighter pilot assignments. During the 1950s, he commanded 2 fighter pilot squadrons of F-102s in the Air Defense Command. In 1960, he was assigned to the Northern Air Defense Command (NORAD) in Colorado Springs, CO. Later he served as vice commander of the Chicago Air Defense Sector at Madison, WI, before returning to Alaska for a second tour in 1965, where he served as Director of Air Defense, and later as Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations for the Alaskan Air Command. He returned to Colorado Springs to the Air Defense Command as Chief of Tactical Evaluation until his retirement in 1970. Colonel Tilley was a command pilot with 4500 flying hours. He flew most of the air force fighters, including the P-35, P-40, P-51, and the F-102. His decorations include the Legion of Merit with oak leaf cluster, Distinguished Flying Cross, Air medal with 2 oak leaf clusters, Joint Service Commendation Medal, Air Force Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster, and the Distinguished Unit Citation with two oak leaf clusters. He was a member of the Order of the Daedalians, an organization of military pilots. After retirement, he worked for the University of Northern Colorado administering their graduate programs for Colorado Springs from 1973-1983.
Tom was a wonderful husband, father, and friend, and he will be greatly missed by all who knew and loved him. He will always be remembered for his kind spirit, gentle soul, and heart-warming smile. Survivors include Mary Tilley, his beloved wife of 69 years, his two daughters, Jane Tilley Barton (Rocky) of Augusta, GA, Nancy Tilley Avery of Atlanta, GA, grandson T.J. Barton (Christy), and two great grandsons, Marshall and Andrew Barton, of Augusta, GA. The family would like to express their sincere gratitude to Regina Jackson and Belinda Leverett for their loving and professional care.
If so desired, contributions may be made to the Wounded Warrior Project, Attn: Advanced Guard, 4899 Belfort Rd., Suite 300, Jacksonville, FL 32256.
Thomas Poteet & Son Funeral Directors, 214 Davis Rd., Augusta, GA 30907 (706) 364-8484. Please sign the guestbook at www.thomaspoteet.com
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