William F. Lovett. Jr.

William was born 17 APR 1923 in Seguin, TX. According to his childhood friend Art Dickerson, Willy, as his friends called him, was an accomplished cello soloist and linebacker on the high school football team. He would spend some time at Texas A&M as an engineering student before enlisting in the Army Air Corps as a PVT on 18 FEB 1943 in San Antonio, TX. In China, he was assigned to the 23rd Fighter Group and awaiting orders to a squadron. Mission 319, 15 SEPT 1944, was his third with the 118th . The flight of four P-51s was lead by Penning and was to patrol the roads around Kweilin. Take-off was at 1110 hours. Lovett was to meet up with Penning at 5,000 feet but apparently stayed at field level with the remainder of the flight. At 1206 Lovett was observed to crash one mile south of the southern end of the runway. He died from his injuries eight hours later.