COL Tim Tarris (USAF official photo)
Peggy McGee
COL Tim Tarris, USAF (Ret), was part of a crew that returned a C-53D aircraft to Europe for the 75th anniversary of D-Day and the 70th anniversary of the Berlin Airlift. He will relive that historic event at the Green Valley Chapter Military Officers Association of America dinner on Nov. 15 at Grill on the Green, 5800 S. Camino Del Sol. The meal for the event will be a traditional turkey dinner with all the trimmings and pumpkin pie for dessert. Cost for the meal will be $32.
The C-53D Skytrooper was nicknamed the D-Day Doll. During World War II, Douglas made more than 16,000 of the DC-3-type aircraft, 380 of which were C-53s. During the 75th anniversary of D-Day, there were DC-3s, C-47s, C-53s, and a C-49 participating in the ceremonies. Of these, 17 were from the U.S. and 10 from European countries. They all flew together for the occasion. Some of those who jumped during the anniversary reenactment also jumped on the original D-Day. COL Tarris will be bringing literature and models of the C-53 to the dinner.
COL Tarris will speak about the background of the aircraft and the journey itself and why it was historically important. He will show a video of the aircraft being prepared for the journey in 2018-19 and highlights of the trip, including stops in Normandy, Germany, and France and the return home.
In 1973 COL Tarris was commissioned as an Air Force 2nd Lieutenant. He attended Undergraduate Pilot Training at Williams AFB, Ariz., graduating in 1974 as a Distinguished Graduate. He was assigned to fly the F-111D at Cannon AFB, N.M.
In 1981 he joined the Ohio Air National Guard (ANG) in Toledo and later the Arizona ANG in Tucson. While there, he was an instructor for A-7D Corsair II and the F-16A/C Fighting Falcon aircraft. In 2000, as director of operations for the State of Arizona, he flew the KC-135 Tanker in Phoenix. He retired as a Colonel with 30 years’ service in 2003.
To reserve a spot for this dinner, please contact Peggy McGee at [email protected] or 520-207-6188 no later than Nov. 7. Commissioned and warrant officers of the military services as well as officers in the Public Health Service and the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration are eligible to attend this event, even if they are not MOAA members.