William R. Bill Conklin

Conklin, William Roscoe “Bill,” died peacefully on 20 November 2014 in Wichita, KS. His loving family surrounded him in the days leading up to his death after a short illness. The funeral service will be held at 2:00 P.M., Tuesday, November 25, 2014, at St. Catherine of Siena. Bill was born 11 September 1922 in Pittsburg, KS, to James and Myrtle Conklin. In 1927 the family, which included sister Catherine Conklin, moved to Wichita and remained there throughout Bills childhood. He graduated from East HS in 1940, worked at Boeing as a “metal worker,” and attended Wichita University for nearly two years, until the “day of infamy” changed his life and sent him into the service of his country. In March 1942, four months after the attack on Pearl Harbor and US entry into WWII, Bill enlisted into the Aviation Cadet program of the United States Army Air Force. After winning his wings and the gold bars of a 2nd Lieutenant, in 1943 he received advanced flight training in the Curtis C-46 Commando transport. He was then assigned to the largest and most dangerous airlift in history, the “Hump Operation” in the China-Burma- India theater. He flew 186 missions from the Assam Valley of India over the treacherous high passes of the Himalayan Mountains into Kunming and other bases in southern China. Nearly 600 aircraft and 1300 airmen were lost in four years on the Hump, but Bill was fortunate, bailing out of his aircraft only once and walking two days to base with his aircrew. After the war ended, Bill married Joan Traudt on 15 December 1945, in Plattsmouth, NE. He flew numerous missions in the 1948/49 Berlin Airlift, which broke the Russian blockade of that city. Subsequent assignments and promotions to Major and Lt. Colonel took Bill and his family to Montgomery, AL, San Antonio, TX, the Pentagon in Virginia, and Headquarters Pacific Air Forces in Hawaii. In 1963, Bill came to McConnell AFB in Wichita, KS, where he completed his 24-year Air Force career with the 381st Strategic Missile Wing. He retired from the Air Force in February 1966. The Conklins had three children: twins William and Michael, and daughter Cheryl . After Bills military retirement, the family remained in Wichita. William was preceded in death by his parents, his sister Catherine, and his wife Joan. He is survived by sons Michael and William, daughter Cheryl Gnad, her husband Pat, their children Christin, Joel, and Andrea, all of Wichita, and by grandson William Charles of Los Angeles. They and his nieces, nephews and their families all join in offering tribute to Bill Conklin. He will be deeply missed. Downing and Lahey Mortuary East.