Wilbert “Bill” Johnson
June 6, 1920 – September 23, 2017
Class: 43-F-SE
Graduation Date: 6/30/1943
Unit: 332nd Fighter Group
Service # 0807098

Wilbert “Bill” Johnson served while a teen in the Civilian Conservation Corps; was an Eagle Scout; graduated Manual Arts HS, attended LA City College and UCLA. When WWII broke out, he volunteered for the Army Air Corps, graduating as a 2nd Lieutenant in 1943. In 1946 he received an honorable discharge, returned to civilian life, married and started his family. He worked in sales, real estate, obtained a Broker’s license and eventually went on to earn an MBA from Pepperdine University in 1972. Bill enjoyed an extensive career in banking and real estate, working his way up to Chief Appraiser and Vice President for both Broadway Federal Savings & Loan and CA Federal Savings. An avid golfer with a private pilot’s license, he appreciated traveling both within the US and abroad. Highly organized and computer literate until his death, he amazed his family, financial planners, and accountants with his record keeping and knowledge of sports and world affairs. Receiving the Congressional Medal of Honor, playing golf with his buddies at Chester Washington and piloting private planes on Las Vegas getaways were among the highlights of his life.

Class 43-F graduated from flight training on June 30, 1943, at Tuskegee Army Air Field in Alabama. Front row, left to right: Willie S. Hunter, Wayne V. Liggins, Hezekiah Lacy, Theodore A. Wilson, Charles E. McGee, Oscar A. Kenney, Richard H. Harris, Weldon K. Groves. Second row, left to right: Frank D. Walker, Joe A. Lewis, Wilbert H. Johnson, William F. Williams Jr., Leonard F. Turner, William G. Wilkerson. Third row, left to right: John S. Sloan, Walter J. Palmer, Theopolis D. Moore, Wiley W. Selden, Robert R. Alexander, Herbert S. Harris, Milton R. Henry, Alexander M. Bright. (U.S. Air Force Historical Research Agency)

Sources:
Legacy.com