AIR OFFICER DIED APRIL 28
Flight Officer Herbst, 21, Killed in Philippines Area
Flight Officer Hilbert Herbst, 21, son of Mrs. Elizabeth Herbst, of this city, was killed in action in the Philippines April 28, his mother has been notified.
The air officer, a B29 pilot, was a graduate of Pendleton, Ore., high school, where the family formerly lived. After leaving Pendleton, he was employed at the Boeing plant, Seattle, Wash., then enlisted in the air corps at Norfolk, Neb., a former home, in the spring of 1942.
Herbst received his wings and commission, August 4, 1944, at Williams Field, chandler, Ariz., and went overseas in January, 1945. His last letter to his relatives was dated April 25.
Besides his mother, he is survived by two sisters and five brothers. One sister, Mrs. Robert Howland, is still living at Pendleton, while the other Mrs. Carl Love, resides at Northwood, Iowa.
Source: Daily Freeman Journal, June 13, 1945 (photo included)
Hilbert E. Herbst, Lt. Army Air Corps - MIA/KIA
Hilbert E. Herbst was born 23 Jan. 1924 to Conrad and Eve Elizabeth Kaiser Herbst. He died Apr. 28, 1945, and is memorialized at the Manila American Cemetery, Fort Bonifacio, Manila, Philippines with a cenotaph at Prospect Hill Cemetery, Norfolk, NE.
Lt. Herbst (Flight Officer) was with the 501st Bomber Squadron, 345th Bomber Group, Medium, flying a B-29.
He was first reported missing in action and later declared killed in action in the Philippines. He was awarded the Purple Heart and Air Medal.
Sources:
Daily Freeman Journal, Webster City, IA
ancestry.com
World War II Memorial
