Robert W Stephens flew 80 combat missions over Germany in World War II and had a total of 241 combat hours.

He enlisted in Feb 1942 and by 1944 had advanced to the rank of Lt Colonel and was commander of a P-51 Mustang fighter squadron.



Before the war, he was a short-stop and pitcher for baseball teams at Bowling Green, Ky., and Evansville, Ind., which were farm clubs for the Boston Braves.

He remained in the Air Force after the war and was promoted to Colonel in 1955. Since the war he had served at bases in Germany, Italy, and Turkey as well as in the United States. He was a wing commander at George AFB, CA before his appointment as director of inspection for the Tactical Air Command.



He was killed in a crash of an F-100 jet fighter just after taking off from Cannon AFB, NM. Killed with him in the crash was Lt. L. W. Emerson, 26, Alhambra, Calif. The plane was about a half mile from the end of the runway and about 300 feet high when engine trouble apparently developed, an Air Force spokesman said. It crashed into a slaughter house lot hitting two discarded railway box cars.



During 18 years of service, Colonel Stephens had flown more than 3,300 hours and had been awarded the Silver Star, Distinguished Flying Cross, Air Medal with 21 Oak Leaf Clusters, American Campaign Medal, European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with four Bronze Service Stars, World War II Victory Medal, Army of Occupation Medal with Germany Clasp, National Defense Service Medal, Distinguished Unit Citation Emblem with one Oak Leaf Cluster and Air Force Longevity Service Award Ribbon with three Oak Leaf Clusters. In addition, he was awarded the Croix de Guerre with Silver Gilt Star by the French Government.