Witcher Terrell Berger was born on December 14, 1919, in Bethlehem, Northampton County, Pennsylvania. He was the son of Henry Casper Berger Sr. and Lucile Spotswood Terrell Berger. He graduated from Gretna High School in 1937. He enlisted in the U.S. Air Force, beginning his pilot training. He completed aviation mechanics instruction at Keesler Field, earned his pilot wings at Moody Field, Georgia, and became a B-26 Marauder pilot with the 587th Bomb Squadron, 394th Bomb Group, Ninth Air Force.

He deployed to England in February 1944, flying with the 394th Bomb Group on bomber missions across Europe. A standard tour consisted of 25 missions, but Witcher volunteered for a second full tour, completing 50 missions by late May 1944. Instead of returning home, he took a short leave in Scotland but returned to London in early June after sensing something significant was coming, Operation Overlord (D-Day). As an experienced Marauder pilot, he volunteered to stay and take part.

In the early morning of June 6, 1944, during heavy cloud cover while preparing to fly a mission to support the Normandy landings, Witcher’s B-26 was involved in a mid-air collision over Gillingham, Kent, England. His aircraft crashed into homes on Corporation Road, killing Witcher, his entire crew, and four civilians on the ground.

1Lt Witcher was initially buried at Cambridge American Cemetery in England, and after the war, his remains were returned to Virginia. He is now buried in the Berger Cemetery, Greenfield, Pittsylvania County, Virginia, USA.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com, gillinghambattleb26crash.weebly.com