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Lt. Will Patton
WWII Pilot
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Born in 1918, in Granby, MO, and enlisting in the Army at the age of 16, William Wyatt patton was refused the first time due to his being of a small, thin build. He then forced himself to eat banana creme
and hamburgers to gain weight, so he could reapply three months later, which he did with success. Incorporated into flight school, he climbed the ladder and became a full-fledged and commissioned pilot at 20 years of age, a very respectable accomplishment.
It was clear that Will Patton was an extremely competent and determined individual. The first assignment of the Missouri farm-boy took him to the Pacific. On December 7th, 1941, he was at Hickam Field in Pearl Harbor
when the Japs attacked. Later, he successfully participated at Midway, downing three enemy planes. Without doubt, Lt. Patton was an experienced and skilled pilot.
 In May of 1944, he was attached to the 8th Army Air Corps, based in England, with the 560th Bomber Squadron of the 388th Bomb Group flying the B-17 Flying Fortress.
Bombing missions took him to the heart of Germany, and, at that time, with fighter escort only part of the way there. The P-47 Thunderbolt did not have the fuel economy to fly to Germany, fight, and return. However, in November of 1944, the P-51D Mustang was able to do the job.
Thus, between the months of May - August, for Lt. Patton, bomber losses were 20% on average, sometimes more. This made the 10 men B-17 crew highly stressed and very well-seasoned (see film "12 O'Clock High" w/Gregory Peck made in 1949). Finally, Lt. Patton successfully completed his 25th mission meaning that his term of being a bomber pilot was over.
Afterwards, in August of 1944, Lt. Patton received an offer to fly the magnificent and gallant P-51D Mustang with the 3rd Scouting Force at Wormingford, England. What would be the mission? - to fly reconnaisance prior to bombing raids to
check visibility, weather conditions, and status of the target. This type of work was ideally fitted to Lt. Patton, as he knew what conditions were needed for a successful bombing mission.
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