Capt. Austin Bogard, commander of Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 168th General Support Aviation shakes hands with Capt. Dick Nelms, retired World War II pilot, during a presentation of the Knight of the Honorable Order of Saint Michael award at the Washington Army National Guard Aviation Readiness Center, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., on Sunday, March 3, 2024. The award is designed to recognize an individual’s long-term support and/or a legacy with significant and long-lasting impact to Army Aviation. While there is no specific time period for this award, it is not normally represented by a single assignment unless recognizing an enduring achievement in direct support of Army Aviation soldiers and their families. (Joseph Siemandel/U.S. National Guard)

During World War II, Army Air Forces pilot Capt. Dick Nelms flew 35 missions in the B-17 Flying Fortress into Nazi-occupied territory in Europe. But the fourth could have been his last.

During a 10-hour trip to Berlin, Nelms’ B-17 — “Rowdy Rebel II” — sustained more than 300 bullet holes. He and his crew did not learn this until they returned to the 447th Bomb Group, 8th Air Force, based in Rattlesden, England.

“We were under attack for almost a half hour, just constant,” Nelms said in a 2017 video interview with The Museum of Flight. “You couldn’t see the sky. It was just brown and black around you. The plane never ceased to bounce through the concussion. You could hear the stuff coming through the plane. And when we got back, I said, ‘Let’s take a look at that plane. We got something deep.’ And we went back, and we started counting holes, and we quit at 300. The crew got tired. They didn’t even count the ones underneath, just the wings and the fuselage on the side. Nobody was hurt and all engines were going. A marvelous airplane.”

Brig. Gen. David Doran, assistant director, Army National Guard for Aviation, Intelligence and Information and Capt. Dick Nelms, World War II pilot join soldiers from the Washington Army National Guard for a presentation of the Knight of the Honorable Order of Saint Michael award at the Washington Army National Guard Aviation Readiness Center, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., on Sunday, March, 3, 2024. (Joseph Siemandel/U.S. National Guard)

Nelms was given a new plane, “Pandora’s Box,” and completed an additional 31 missions. He would later receive honors including the Distinguished Flying Cross, five Air Medals, the Presidential Unit Citation and the French Legion of Honor Medal.

On Sunday, Nelms, now 101, added the Knight of the Honorable Order of Saint Michael award to the list at a ceremony at the Washington Army National Guard Aviation Readiness Center, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash. Guard members from 1st Battalion, 168th General Support Aviation presented the award to Nelms.

“You come from a generation that many of us long revere, and we honestly are just so proud to call ourselves brothers and sisters in the long line of military aviators who joined the military to go fly the most amazing machines,” Brig. Gen. David Doran, assistant director of the Army National Guard for Aviation, Intelligence and Information said in a Washington National Guard news release announcing the award.

The Order of Saint Michael award, established in 1990 by the Army Aviation Association of America and the U.S. Army Aviation Center, is “designed to recognize an individual’s long-term support and/or a legacy with significant and long lasting impact to Army Aviation,” according to the release.

Brig. Gen. David Doran, assistant director, Army National Guard for Aviation, Intelligence and Information presents Capt. Dick Nelms, World War II pilot with the Knight of the Honorable Order of Saint Michael award at the Washington Army National Guard Aviation Readiness Center, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., on Sunday, March, 3, 2024. (Joseph Siemandel/U.S. National Guard)

Nelms, a resident of Mercer Island, Wash., enlisted in the Army Air Forces — the predecessor of the U.S. Air Force — in 1942 and was accepted to Aviation Cadet and Pilot training for active duty in March 1943.

Following the war’s end, Nelms moved to the Seattle area and went into the commercial art business. Notably, in 1967 he was commissioned to create the new Washington state seal insignia. He selected a Gilbert Stuart portrait of George Washington, which is still in use today.

Nelms continues to travel around the country to talk about his military service, and he volunteers at the Seattle Museum of Flight leading group discussions, the release said.

“Capt. Nelms is truly an incredible man, the men he flew with were incredibly brave. We wanted to take the time to thank him for his service,” Maj. Adam Hanisch, operations and administrative officer for 96th Aviation Troop Command, said in the release. “The Knight of the Order of Saint Michael award is so rare, so it’s a great experience to witness this.”

Capt. Taylor Payne, commander of Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 168th General Support Aviation presents a coin to Capt. Dick Nelms, World War II pilot during a presentation of the Knight of the Honorable Order of Saint Michael award at the Washington Army National Guard Aviation Readiness Center, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., on Sunday, March, 3, 2024. (Joseph Siemandel/U.S. National Guard)

Capt. Dick Nelms, World War II pilot addresses the audience during a presentation of the Knight of the Honorable Order of Saint Michael award at the Washington Army National Guard Aviation Readiness Center, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., on Sunday, March, 3, 2024. (Joseph Siemandel/U.S. National Guard)

Chief Warrant Officer 4 Ryan Schwend, CH-47 pilot, 1st Battalion, 168th General Support Aviation shakes hands with Capt. Dick Nelms, World War II pilot during a presentation of the Knight of the Honorable Order of Saint Michael award at the Washington Army National Guard Aviation Readiness Center, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., on Sunday, March, 3, 2024. (Joseph Siemandel/U.S. National Guard)

Brig. Gen. David Doran, assistant director, Army National Guard for Aviation, Intelligence and Information and Capt. Dick Nelms, World War II pilot join soldiers from the Washington Army National Guard for a presentation of the Knight of the Honorable Order of Saint Michael award at the Washington Army National Guard Aviation Readiness Center, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash., on Sunday, March, 3, 2024. (Joseph Siemandel/U.S. National Guard)