Born on 29 May 1921 in St. Louis, MO, William A. Webber graduated from high school in Topeka, KS in 1939 and subsequently attended Washburn College in Topeka for two years. He married his college sweetheart, Phyllis Thacher, in May 1941. They began married life near Kansas City where he worked in the office of a munitions plant, but by the time I was born in April of 1942, he was working as an accountant in the aircraft industry. He had always wanted to fly, and intent on serving his country, he enlisted in the Army Air Corps in the autumn of 1943. He was sent to Colorado and then Santa Ana, California, for flight training. When his training was complete, he trained other pilots at several bases across the country from California to Florida. My mother and I lived near each of the air bases for three months at a time during this entire period.

In August of 1944, he had a two-week furlough, at which time he moved my mother and me back to Topeka where we would live with my maternal grandparents for the next five years. My dad then returned to Florida where he had trained his final crew during the previous three months. A new B-17 was delivered to them at Hunter Field in Georgia, on 31 August 1944. They named it Miss Fitt (44-6459). The crew flew it to Kimbolton Base near Bedford, England in mid-September with overnight stops at several places including Maine, Labrador, Iceland, and Scotland. A favorite story from this period is that my dad allowed the bombardier to have a dog which was named Deacon and also allowed him to take him on the flight to England, a small oxygen mask having been made for the dog. While overseas, the dog had to stay in a kennel, but both he and his owner survived the war and returned home.

My dad completed 31 missions and was on his 32nd mission on 3 February 1945, a combined RAF and 8th AF attack on Berlin. I have his personal mission diary in which he noted on 29 January that the #1 & #2 engines on the Miss Fitt were rough. On his final mission, that plane did not check out and a last minute substitution was made, the Birmingham Jewell (42-97678), the oldest plane still flying in the 8th AF with 127 previous missions. Approximately 20 minutes short of their target, the #3 engine developed problems. Unable to maintain altitude or formation, they turned back and were headed to the North Sea to return to base. At approximately noon, two or three German Me109's came from behind and shot out two more engines, scored hits on the nose section, and set the bomb bay on fire. Both pilots stayed at the controls for as long as possible to allow others to bail out. Webber tried to set the autopilot controls, but the electrical systems were shot out. He ordered the co-pilot out and was said to have been in his parachute harness but still at the controls. German reports indicate the plane exploded in the air before crashing near Jevenstedt, a small village near Rendsburg. Of the crew, four were killed in action; the other five were taken prisoner by German forces.

My dad was supposed to have completed his 35 missions and been home on leave for my third birthday; instead, my mother received a telegram that he was missing in action. I wish I could remember his voice and his laugh. I treasure the few snapshots I have of my dad and will always wonder what might have been had he returned. Relatives told me of his beautiful singing voice, his love of dancing, his sense of humor, and his concern for others less fortunate. I have letters from several of his surviving crew which mentioned that he was quite a man, tolerant, not given to shouting or blustering who never had a harsh word toward any of his crew. His navigator Thomas Pickett wrote, "In regard to your father, he was an excellent pilot and a great person. He promoted harmony among all the crew members. We were very disciplined but were led in a way that had us working together. Bill was a very well mannered person with a good sense of humor."

– Judy Webber Hathaway –

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