Thomas Hubbard attended the Ryan School of Aeronautics in San Diego, CA in 1937. He graduated, gaining a pilot’s license as well as an airplane and engine mechanics one in May 1938. After enlisting in the Air Corps at San Diego, CA on 25 June 1938, he started fighter pilot training at Randolph Field, TX. After graduating at Kelly Field, TX on 26 May 1939, he was assigned to the 20th Pursuit Group at Barksdale Field, LA and flew P-36s. The Group moved to Moffett Field, CA in November 1939. A few weeks later, as the Group was split in two, he joined the 20th Pursuit Squadron of the 35th Pursuit Group at Hamilton Field, CA. The 20th Pursuit left for the Philippine Islands in October 1940 and Hubbard was later transferred to the 28th Bomb Squadron, based at Clark Field on Luzon Island. He flew B-10 and B-18 bombers until the Pacific War started. He spent 2 months on Bataan and the Island of Mindanao, then was sent to Australia where he piloted P-40s until he joined a Task Force heading for New Caledonia. There, he became 67th Fighter Squadron Operations Officer, flying P-40s. After a short period as Commander of the 67th FS, he took a detachment of the Squadron to Guadalcanal in September 1942, participating to the fighting there for two weeks and earned the Silver Star for gallantry in action during this period.

Hubbard had a total of 33 missions in New Caledonia, Guadalcanal and elsewhere in the South Pacific, flying P-400s and p-40s. Upon returning to the US in November 1942, he served as Group Training Officer in the 326th Operational Training Group at Wendover Field, Massachusetts, where training flights were made on P-47s. In May 1943, he was assigned Deputy Commander in the 355th Fighter Group and left on mid-June with the Group’s advance echelon to the European Theatre of Operations. The 355th FG was assigned to the 8th AF on 6 July 1943 and Hubbard started flying missions with the Group. He was on his 21st mission on 13 November 1943, taking off from Bungay (not from the 355th's base of Steeple Morden) flying on P-47D 42-7944 with his Group’s escort of 8th AF bombers on return from Bremen, when his plane’s engine dropped forward in its frame. With his aircraft off balance and the gas and oil lines broken, he got away from the bombers and bailed out at 25,000ft over the Netherlands. After his landing in parachute, he was helped in his evasion of capture by Dutch, Belgian and French citizens and Resistance members. Clothed, fed and sheltered in many places, he was led from the Netherlands to Brussels, Belgium, then to the South of France via Paris, Bayonne, Saint-Jean-de-Luz. He crossed into Spain over the Pyrénées mountains with guides and other evaders on 4 June 1944. Later driven to Madrid in a diplomatic car, he arrived there on 24 June. He was driven to Gibraltar and flew back from that British base to England on 27 June 1944, landing at Bristol the following day. Thomas Hubbard stayed in the Air Force until his retirement from service in April 1951. See the full story of his evasion at http://www.evasioncomete.be/fhubbarth.html