Emily Chan
During World War II, Aaron Bank led a number of daring missions. But what he was best known for was his role as “the father of the Green Berets,” the special operations branch of the United States Army.
He helped create the most elite and effective fighting force in the world, fulfilling his goal for the U.S. to be able to perform covert missions whenever necessary.
Aaron Bank was born on November 23, 1902, in New York City to Russian Jewish immigrants. His father died when he was a child, leaving his mother to raise him alone. She taught French, German, and piano to make ends meet.
Bank grew up working as a lifeguard. In 1942, he enlisted in the U.S. Army at the age of 39. He was considered too old for combat at the time, so he worked as a tactical training officer in Camp Polk, Louisiana. One day, he learned that volunteers were being requested for “special assignments.”
They needed to be physically fit and know multiple languages. Bank fit the bill, so he was able to obtain a position with the Special Operations Branch of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), which was the precursor to the CIA. He immediately became an important figure in the agency.
Bank led a team to parachute into France’s Lozère department. They met up with the French Resistance and coordinated with Belgian, British, and Dutch personnel to fight back against German forces.
Once that was established, Bank participated in Operation Anvil, which was later renamed Operation Dragoon.
It is better known as the Allied invasion of southern France. His team pushed German forces out, freeing multiple towns.
His work peaked with Operation Iron Cross, a plan for the OSS and Bank to use German Jews and defectors to parachute into the German-Austrian border and capture or kill Adolf Hitler if he fled Berlin. However, Hitler hunkered down in a bunker and never left the city, leading to the operation’s cancellation.
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