By Deborah Larsen
David Campbell Williams, Jr.
David Campbell Williams, Jr. was born in Rochester, Michigan, on June 5, 1920, the son of David Campbell and Sophia Wagner Williams. He attended Rochester High School and graduated with the class of 1937.
David enlisted in the U.S. Army in June 1938 and was stationed at first at Fort Brady, near Sault Ste. Marie. There he met and married Bernice Morley, a resident of the Soo. David then transferred to the Air Corps and spent two and a half years stationed in the Panama Canal Zone before returning to the U.S. to attend flight school in Waco, Texas.
After qualifying as a pilot, David was sent overseas and was stationed at Saipan in the Marianas Islands in October 1944. He was a member of the 870th Squadron of the 497th Bombardment Group and flew the B-29 Superfortress.
On January 27, 1945, David was the co-pilot of a B-29 nicknamed “Haley’s Comet” that left Saipan on a mission to bomb the Musachino aircraft factory in Tokyo, Japan. The B-29 was hit by enemy aircraft fire, and David was fatally wounded in the chest and head. He died in his seat, and according to military reports his aircraft was last seen to have a fire in the bomb bay. Two members of the 11-man crew survived the crash and were picked up and tortured by the Japanese forces. They were later able to testify to the manner of David Williams’ death aboard the B-29.
Bernice Williams was notified of her husband’s loss on February 1, 1945. His remains were not recovered.