AA27709 North American P-51D Mustang, ‘Moonbeam McSWINE’, William T. ‘Bill’ Whisner Jr, 1945

Ace pilot William T. ‘Bill’ Whisner had risen to prominence as the regular wingman of famous fellow US ‘Ace’ George Preddy, but also went on to become a respected ace in his own right. His most successful day came on 21st November 1944, when he shot down five FW190 fighters on the same mission over the synthetic oil refineries at Merseburg, with a further two probably destroyed, and all in a frantic 20 minutes of combat. He would be awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for that incredible achievement. Whisner would be awarded a second DSC on New Year’s Day 1945, when airfield Y-29 Asch in Belgium was attacked by 65 enemy fighters during the Luftwaffe’s ‘Operation Bodenplatte’ raid. Taking off in his usual Mustang ‘Moonbeam McSWINE’, Wistner noticed enemy aircraft approaching the airfield and as soon as his undercarriage had retracted, he started firing at a Focke Wulf Fw190. As the enemy fighter hit the ground, Whisner felt the impact of enemy canon shells striking his fighter, immediately taking evasive action to avoid further hits. Despite suffering damage to his aircraft, he stayed with his Mustang to claim a second Focke Wulf and two further Messerschmitt Bf 109’s destroyed, bringing his total victory score to 15.5 aircraft. These would be Whisner’s final victories of the Second World War, however, he would go on to become one of only seven US airmen to also attain ‘Ace’ status during the Korean War, this time flying the North American F-86A/E Sabre jet.