Early career After graduation from West Point, Sink was commissioned as a
second lieutenant and assigned to the
8th Infantry Regiment at
Fort Screven, Georgia.
World War II In 1940, Sink joined the Army's fledgling
paratrooper force and was assigned to the
501st Parachute Infantry Battalion at
Fort Benning. Sink subsequently commanded the
503rd Parachute Infantry Battalion before assuming command of the
506th Parachute Infantry Regiment at
Camp Toccoa, Georgia, in July 1942. In December 1942, Sink read in ''
Reader's Digest'' about a Japanese army battalion that marched in 70 hours. Not to be outdone, he ordered the 2nd Battalion of the 506th to march from Camp Toccoa to
Atlanta, covering 118 miles in 75 hours. The regiment was attached to the
101st Airborne Division on 1 June 1943 and arrived in England in September and was
billeted in the
Wiltshire villages of
Aldbourne,
Chilton Foliat,
Froxfield, and
Ramsbury. On
D-Day, Sink parachuted into Normandy from the lead plane of the
439th Troop Carrier Group. He commanded the 506th until the final month of World War II, Sink's drinking earned him the nickname "Bourbon Bob", but Major
Richard Winters said he believed it did not affect his leadership. ==Personal life and death==