William Henry Alm was born on March 29, 1919 to parents Margaret and Henry Alm of at 2425 Pioneer Avenue. He had two sisters, Virginia and Thelma Ann, and two brothers, James and Robert. The Alm family, originally from McKeesport, moved to Brookline in 1925.
William attended Brookline Elementary School and graduated from South Hills High School. He then went on to college and, when war was declared, enlisted in the Army on January 26, 1942. William entered the Army Air Corps and received a commission as 2nd Lieutenant. After flight training, he received a promotion to 1st Lieutenant and was assigned as a P47 Thunderbolt pilot in the U.S. Army's 328th Fighter Squadron, 352nd Fighter Group of the U.S. 8th Air Force.
On September 14, 1943, William went missing. As one of a group of eighty-three fighters returning from a mission sweep along the coast of France from Knokke to Calais, the formation entered a large cloud bank. The squadron leader reported that when the planes emerged on the other side, William's was not in the formation and never returned to base. His was the only plane not to return from the mission.
After an investigation into William's disappearance, the official report stated that either his aircraft had a mechanical failure or he was suffering from anoxia (lack of oxygen) and crashed into the English Channel fifty miles east of the Blackwater Estuary.
Contributor: Harry Alexander (49232697) •
William attended Brookline Elementary School and graduated from South Hills High School. He then went on to college and, when war was declared, enlisted in the Army on January 26, 1942. William entered the Army Air Corps and received a commission as 2nd Lieutenant. After flight training, he received a promotion to 1st Lieutenant and was assigned as a P47 Thunderbolt pilot in the U.S. Army's 328th Fighter Squadron, 352nd Fighter Group of the U.S. 8th Air Force.
On September 14, 1943, William went missing. As one of a group of eighty-three fighters returning from a mission sweep along the coast of France from Knokke to Calais, the formation entered a large cloud bank. The squadron leader reported that when the planes emerged on the other side, William's was not in the formation and never returned to base. His was the only plane not to return from the mission.
After an investigation into William's disappearance, the official report stated that either his aircraft had a mechanical failure or he was suffering from anoxia (lack of oxygen) and crashed into the English Channel fifty miles east of the Blackwater Estuary.
Contributor: Harry Alexander (49232697) •
William Henry Alm was born on March 29, 1919 to parents Margaret and Henry Alm of at 2425 Pioneer Avenue. He had two sisters, Virginia and Thelma Ann, and two brothers, James and Robert. The Alm family, originally from McKeesport, moved to Brookline in 1925.
William attended Brookline Elementary School and graduated from South Hills High School. He then went on to college and, when war was declared, enlisted in the Army on January 26, 1942. William entered the Army Air Corps and received a commission as 2nd Lieutenant. After flight training, he received a promotion to 1st Lieutenant and was assigned as a P47 Thunderbolt pilot in the U.S. Army's 328th Fighter Squadron, 352nd Fighter Group of the U.S. 8th Air Force.
On September 14, 1943, William went missing. As one of a group of eighty-three fighters returning from a mission sweep along the coast of France from Knokke to Calais, the formation entered a large cloud bank. The squadron leader reported that when the planes emerged on the other side, William's was not in the formation and never returned to base. His was the only plane not to return from the mission.
After an investigation into William's disappearance, the official report stated that either his aircraft had a mechanical failure or he was suffering from anoxia (lack of oxygen) and crashed into the English Channel fifty miles east of the Blackwater Estuary.
Contributor: Harry Alexander (49232697) •
William attended Brookline Elementary School and graduated from South Hills High School. He then went on to college and, when war was declared, enlisted in the Army on January 26, 1942. William entered the Army Air Corps and received a commission as 2nd Lieutenant. After flight training, he received a promotion to 1st Lieutenant and was assigned as a P47 Thunderbolt pilot in the U.S. Army's 328th Fighter Squadron, 352nd Fighter Group of the U.S. 8th Air Force.
On September 14, 1943, William went missing. As one of a group of eighty-three fighters returning from a mission sweep along the coast of France from Knokke to Calais, the formation entered a large cloud bank. The squadron leader reported that when the planes emerged on the other side, William's was not in the formation and never returned to base. His was the only plane not to return from the mission.
After an investigation into William's disappearance, the official report stated that either his aircraft had a mechanical failure or he was suffering from anoxia (lack of oxygen) and crashed into the English Channel fifty miles east of the Blackwater Estuary.
Contributor: Harry Alexander (49232697) •
Gravesite Details
Entered the service from Pennsylvania.
Family Members
Sponsored by Ancestry
Advertisement
Records on Ancestry
Sponsored by Ancestry
Advertisement
