Original Item. Only One Available. This is a very attractive original U.S. WWII Air Medal, privately engraved to Sergeant Robert Denton Stine, Army Serial Number 33 845 277, a Pennsylvania veteran of the 492nd Bombardment Squadron (Heavy), 7th Bombardment Group, Tenth Air Force, who served overseas in the China-Burma-India (CBI) Theater during 1945. Identified in the accompanying provenance as an aerial gunner, Stine served with a squadron operating the famous Consolidated B-24 Liberator heavy bomber during the final months of the war.

The Air Medal is struck in bronze and displays the familiar sixteen-point compass rose, with an American eagle carrying lightning bolts in its talons. The decoration retains its distinctive blue and golden-orange suspension ribbon and is housed in a black presentation case, with AIR MEDAL embossed in gold on the lid. The interior is lined with cream-colored velvet and satin, and the grouping also includes the matching ribbon bar and small lapel device.

Most importantly, the reverse of the medal is privately engraved in slanted capital letters:

ROBERT D. STINE

The engraving identifies the medal with Stine, whose military service is recorded in considerable detail. He entered the U.S. Army on March 14, 1944, and served overseas from January 19 to September 26, 1945, before receiving his honorable discharge on December 7, 1945, with the rank of Sergeant. His Pennsylvania veterans burial record specifically identifies his organization as the 492nd Bomb Squadron.

Accompanying the medal is an extensive research file containing printed copies of Stine's Pennsylvania veterans burial card, his March 1950 application for Pennsylvania WWII veterans' compensation, National Archives military-service information, his obituary, and historical material relating to the 492nd Bombardment Squadron and 7th Bombardment Group. Additional material includes period-related biographical and aviation research. Together, these records establish his identity, military service dates, organization, and postwar life.

The grouping remains in good overall condition, with normal age and storage wear. The medal retains a pleasing bronze finish with scattered surface marks and light patination, while the suspension ribbon remains well preserved with strong coloration. The engraved name is clear and fully legible. The presentation case shows more noticeable wear, including scuffing, areas of finish deterioration, and scattered marks to the exterior. The cream-colored interior retains its fitted compartments, with some age toning and light discoloration. The accompanying insignia remains attractive.

Historical Context

The Air Medal was established on May 11, 1942, by President Franklin D. Roosevelt through Executive Order 9158. It was created to recognize military personnel who distinguished themselves through meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight. As American air operations expanded throughout WWII, the medal became an important decoration for aircrew members whose duties involved combat missions and other hazardous operational flying.

Awards could recognize individual acts of distinguished service or sustained meritorious achievement during aerial operations. Within the Army Air Forces, recipients included pilots, navigators, bombardiers, flight engineers, radio operators, and aerial gunners. Award standards developed throughout the war, with consideration given to the nature of the mission, operational hazards, and the individual's performance.

For aerial gunners aboard the B-24 Liberator, combat flying was especially demanding. The aircraft carried defensive .50-caliber machine guns in several positions, typically including the nose, dorsal, waist, ball, and tail installations. Gunners were responsible for maintaining observation, identifying approaching enemy aircraft, and operating the defensive armament during attacks. Long missions at altitude exposed crews to intense cold, fatigue, mechanical difficulties, and the possibility of enemy interception or antiaircraft fire.

Robert Denton Stine was born on April 15, 1921, in Waynesboro, Franklin County, Pennsylvania, the son of S. Denton Stine and Beulah Beck Stine. He spent his early life in Waynesboro and married Gladys L. Kauffman in August 1939, several years before his entry into the armed forces.

Stine entered active military service at Fort George G. Meade, Maryland, in March 1944. Following his stateside service and training, he departed for overseas duty in January 1945, joining the American military effort in the China-Burma-India Theater during the closing stages of the campaign against Japanese forces in Southeast Asia.

His recorded organization, the 492nd Bombardment Squadron (Heavy), had a wartime history extending back to 1942. The squadron was constituted on September 19, 1942, and activated on October 25, becoming part of the 7th Bombardment Group. Operating from airfields in India, it was equipped with B-24 Liberator heavy bombers and undertook long-range operations against Japanese military installations, transportation networks, and supply routes.

The squadron entered combat on January 24, 1943, beginning a sustained operational period that continued through the Allied campaigns in Burma and neighboring regions. Its missions included attacks on airfields, railway junctions, bridges, shipping, warehouses, and other facilities essential to Japanese forces occupying Burma and maintaining communications with Thailand and southern China.

The 7th Bombardment Group was one of the principal American heavy-bomber organizations operating under Tenth Air Force in India. Originally established during the First World War, the group entered WWII with a long history in American military aviation. Following the Japanese offensive in Southeast Asia, it became involved in the defense of the Netherlands East Indies before moving to India in 1942.

The group initially operated a mixture of aircraft, including B-17 Flying Fortresses, before converting to the longer-range B-24 Liberator. The Liberator's range and bomb-carrying capacity made it particularly suited to the distances encountered in the China-Burma-India Theater, where aircrews often had to cross hundreds of miles of difficult terrain to reach their assigned targets.

By early 1945, when Stine began his overseas service, the strategic situation in Burma had changed considerably. Allied ground forces were advancing through central Burma, supported by American and British air operations intended to destroy Japanese communications and prevent the movement of reinforcements and supplies. Heavy bombers of the 7th Bombardment Group continued to strike targets throughout the region, including major transportation facilities in Thailand.

One of the group's most significant operations took place on March 19, 1945, when its aircraft attacked Japanese supply lines in Thailand. The mission targeted elements of the transportation network supporting Japanese forces, particularly the railway and bridge system linking Thailand with Burma. The group's performance during the operation earned it a Distinguished Unit Citation, the second such distinction awarded during its WWII service.

The 492nd Bombardment Squadron shared in this citation, officially recorded for Thailand on March 19, 1945. Stine's overseas service coincided with this period of the squadron's history, although his individual participation in the mission has not been established.

Following the conclusion of its regular bombing operations in May 1945, the 7th Bombardment Group undertook a different assignment connected with the Allied logistical effort in China. With much of Burma returning to Allied control, American aviation units continued supporting Chinese operations against Japan, including the movement of urgently needed supplies and aviation fuel.

The 492nd transferred to Tezpur, India, in June 1945, where its B-24 aircraft were employed in transporting gasoline to forward bases in China. These missions continued through September 1945, overlapping with the final months of Stine's recorded foreign service.

Transporting gasoline by air was an important part of the extraordinary logistical effort required to sustain Allied forces in China. The mountainous geography separating India from China, together with the limited overland transportation network, made air transport essential throughout much of the war. The famous aerial supply route over the Himalayas and adjoining mountain ranges became known as "The Hump," and crews flying these routes faced unpredictable weather, dangerous terrain, and demanding operational conditions.

Stine's overseas service concluded on September 26, 1945, shortly after Japan's formal surrender. He subsequently returned to the United States and was discharged at Greensboro, North Carolina, on December 7, 1945, exactly four years after the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Following his discharge, Stine returned to Pennsylvania and resumed civilian employment with Landis Tool Company, where he worked as a machinist until his retirement in April 1983. He and his wife, Gladys, made their home in Mont Alto, Pennsylvania, and raised three daughters.

Stine remained in Franklin County throughout his postwar life and was a member of the Calvary Assembly of God. He died on January 2, 1987, at the age of 65, shortly after being admitted to Waynesboro Hospital. His obituary, published the following day in the Record Herald of Waynesboro, specifically recalled his service with the U.S. Army Air Corps during the China-Burma-India Campaign.

He was buried in Mount Zion Cemetery, Quincy Township, Franklin County, Pennsylvania.

The privately engraved Air Medal, its original-style presentation furnishings, and the accompanying biographical material preserve the military identity of a Pennsylvania veteran whose service took him to India during the final year of WWII, when the 492nd Bombardment Squadron was completing its heavy-bomber operations and undertaking the demanding task of supplying Allied forces in China.