William Harrell Nellis

Military

William joined the Army Enlisted Reserve on 2 Dec 1942, training in Albany, Georgia. He was commissioned as a Flight Officer on 7 Jan 1944 and was sent overseas with the 495th Replacement Group on 21 May. On 9 July 1944 he was assigned to the 513th Fighter Squadron, 406th Fighter Group in support of General Patton's 3rd Army flying strafing and bombing missions in a Republic P-47 Thunderbolt. On his 70th mission, he was strafing a German convoy in the area of Bastogne, Belgium when his P-47D-28-RE (#44-19570) was struck by ground fire. His plane caught fire and he was to low to bail out. The plane impacted in the vicinity of Winseler, Luxembourg. In April, 1945, his body was recovered and he was interred in the Henri-Chapelle American Cemetery and Memorial. Five years later, the Las Vegas Air Force Base was named in his honor - Nellis Air Force Base.

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Units served with

People

  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 406th Fighter Group 513th Fighter Squadron
  • Service Numbers: O-887236
  • Highest Rank: First Lieutenant
  • Role/Job: Pilot

Revisions

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corrected spelling

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TogetherWeServed.com

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Sources

TogetherWeServed.com; Fields Of Honor - Database; MACR 11496; Global, Find A Grave Index