John W. Schwikert

John W. Schwikert, age 93, passed away in Las Vegas, NV on July 21, 2017. He was born in Rochester, NY, but has been a Las Vegas resident for the past 54 years after retiring from the U.S. Air Force as a pilot. He was a bomber pilot during WWII and was shot down over Germany where he became a P.O.W. He worked as a supervisor at the Nevada Test Site for 20 years. He is survived by 3 children, 6 grandchildren, and 1 great granddaughter. Funeral Service will be held on Tue, Aug 1, 2017 at 10AM; Palm South Jones Mortuary, 1600 S. Jones Blvd, Las Vegas. Burial with Air Force Honors will follow at Bunker’s Memory Garden. In lieu of flowers, please donate to your favorite charity.

Good bye to One from the “Greatest Generation”.

Goodbye Dad……..

Dad did not like to talk about his experience as a B-17

pilot during World War II. It was just another job, as he said.

18 March 1945, Over Berlin, Germany, from the book,

“The Fireball Outfit” by Ken Blakebrough

The Target-Berlin was referred to many who went on the raid as

“Terror Sunday.” A name well chosen. The 8th Air Force committed

2000 planes in this raid.

Interrogation of the returning air crews exposed something else which

was unique about this Berlin Mission- unique not because of the

losses or battle damage but rather the prolonged terror to which

the men had been subjected. Flak, fighters and wretched weather

were nothing new to the veteran crews but at Berlin this day, the

men had been subjected to all three of these elements of danger to

an exaggerated degree and over a considerable length of time.

Lt. John W. SCHWIKERT did not return this day but is credited with

saving the lives of his crew, who spent the rest of the war in a

German Prisoner of War Camp.