 McQueens character Hilts was based on amalgamation of several  characters, including Major Dave Jones, a flight commander during  Doolittles Raid who made it to Europe and was shot down and  captured and Colonel Jerry Sage, who was an OSS agent in the North  African desert when he was captured. Col. Sage was able to don a  flight jacket and pass as a flier otherwise he would have been  executed as a spy. Another inspiration was probably Sqn Ldr Eric  Foster who escaped no less than seven times from German  prisoner