Robert B . Williams Major General Robert Boyd Williams was a World War II general in the United States Army Air Forces . He led the B - 17 raid on the Schweinfurt ball - bearing factories , the first large - scale deep penetration bombing raid on Germany . Early life . Robert B . Williams was born in Albany , Texas , on Nov . 9 , 1901 . He graduated from Texas Agricultural and Mechanical College with a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering in 1923 . He was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Air Service on June 6 , 1923 . Early career . Williams entered flying training in June 1923 at Brooks Field in San AntonioTexas . In January 1924 , he began advanced flying training at nearby Kelly Field , Texas . From August 1924 to October 1924 , Williams served as Squadron Adjutant at Kelly Field . From October 1924 to June 1925 , he attended the Photography Course at the Air Service Technical School at Chanute Field , Illinois . From June 1925 to May 1926 , Williams served with the 5th Observation Squadron at Mitchel Field , N . Y . In May 1926 , Williams moved to France Field in the Panama Canal Zone , where he served with the 6th Composite Group and the 7th Observation Squadron . In 1928 , he was commended for making an emergency landing in a crater lake in El Salvador and then spiraling his plane out of this hazardous area after refueling . In July 1928 , he became the Operations Officer of the 24th Pursuit Squadron at France Field . In September 1929 , he was named Commanding Officer , 12th Photo Section , 24th Pursuit Squadron at France Field . In May 1930 , Williams returned to the U . S . , serving as a flying Instructor at March Field , California . In August 1931 , he transferred to Randolph Field , Texas where he served as a flight instructor . From August 1933 to June 1934 , Williams attended the Air Corps Tactical School , Maxwell Field , Alabama . Williams moved to Rockwell Field , California in August 1934 , where he served as Secretary and Senior Instructor , Advanced Air Navigation Training Unit . In April 1935 , he was assigned to the 30th Bombardment Squadron , Rockwell Field . From August 1936 to June 1937 , Williams attended the U . S . Army Command and General Staff School at Fort Leavenworth , Kansas . In June 1937 , Williams was assiged as Operations Officer of the 2nd Bombardment Group , General Headquarters Air Force , Langley Field , Virginia . The 2nd Bomb Group received the very first B - 17 Flying Fortress bomber delivered to the Army Air Corps in 1937 . In February 1938 , Williams took part in the United States to South America flight by six B - 17s from Langley Field to Buenos Aires , Argentina , and back . Williams was commended in connection with that flight . This goodwill tour to Argentina represented the longest distance performance of its kind on record and subsequently earned the 2nd Bomb Group the Mackay Trophy . In May 1938 , Williams was assigned to the 49th Bombardment Squadron at Langley Field . He became squadron commander of the 49th Bomb Squadron in 1939 . In November 1939 , he took part in a flight of seven " Flying Fortresses " from Langley Field to Rio de Janeiro , Brazil and return . Williams received the Order of the Southern Cross from the government of Brazil in 1940 for his participation in the flight to Rio de Janeiro . From February 1940 to January 1942 , Williams was again assigned to the 2nd Bombardment Group , Langley Field . For several months late in 1940 and early 1941 , he served as a military observer in England during the early part of World War II while the U . S . was still neutral . He was wounded and lost an eye during an air raid on London . In January 1942 , Williams moved to Mitchel Field in New York , where he served with the 1st Air Force Bomber Command . World War II . In September 1942 , Williams was named to command the 2nd Bomb Command ( part of Second Air Force ) at Fort George Wright , Washington He was in command of the 16th Bomb Wing briefly in April 1943 , and on May 1 , 1943 , became Commanding General of the 1st Bomb Command in El Paso , Texas . In June 1943 he was assigned to the 8th Air Force in Great Britain , subsequently becoming Commanding General of the 1st Bombardment Division with headquarters at Brampton Grange , England . Williams pioneered the use of VHF radio communications to control the attack on a target by a bomber formation . He announced that previously the formations had been merely led . After takeoff there was no control over the attack than in the case of a projectile once fired from a gun . Now the formation would have command , as distinguished from mere leadership . Previously , radio silence had been sacrosanct . Williams also authorized radio use to organize the formations . Williams also improved the training of the lead bombardiers by setting up rotating lead crews in each bomb group . In addition , Williams implemented improved navigation devices for identifying the targets . The Schweinfurt Raid . " See also main article : Schweinfurt – Regensburg mission " While in command of the 1st Bombardment Division , Williams led the first large daylight bombing strike against Germany , against the ball - bearing factories in Schweinfurt on Aug . 17 , 1943 . Schweinfurt was the cornerstone of the Germany ' s ball - bearing industry , where five plants turned out nearly two - thirds of Germany ' s ball bearings and roller bearings . World War II created a huge demand for ball bearings . The German aviation industry alone used 2 . 4 million of them a month . In the summer of 1943 , US and British planners for the Combined Bomber Offensive identified the ball bearings industry as a key " bottleneck " target , the destruction of which could clog up war production and potentially shorten the war . Eighth Air Force B - 17s had been flying from England since September 1942 , but seldom on large missions or with anything better than mediocre results . Maj . Gen . Ira C . Eaker , commanding Eighth Air Force , had been unable to mount any large raids . Finally , in August 1943 , he was able to put together enough B - 17s for a large mission that would launch almost 400 bombers in a deep double strike against the ball bearing factories at Schweinfurt and the Messerschmitt factories at Regensburg . Planning for the Schweinfurt – Regensburg mission . After an earlier postponement due to weather , the mission was scheduled for Aug . 17 , 1943 . The strike force was divided into two parts . The Third Air Division , led by Col . Curtis E . LeMay , would take off first and bomb Regensburg , 430 miles inside occupied Europe . The First Air Division , led by Williams , then a Brigadier General , would take off nine minutes later for Schweinfurt . Williams had the larger force , 230 B - 17 s compared to 146 for LeMay . Both divisions would follow the same route for most of the way , but beyond Frankfurt , the First Division would turn toward Schweinfurt . The plan was for both divisions to reach their targets about the same time , the nine - minute interval between them offset by the location of Schweinfurt , which was 75 miles closer than Regensburg . The first bombs were to fall on Schweinfurt at 10 : 12 a . m . , and on Regensburg one minute later . Although the Messerschmitt plant was important , producing up to 400 Me 109 fighters a month , it was not the main target . By going first , LeMay ' s division was supposed to lure the German fighters away to give Williams a better shot at Schweinfurt . Vulnerability of the B - 17 . The B - 17s had never ventured so deeply into Germany , and they would be without fighter escort for most of the way . British Spitfire s could go with them only as far as Antwerp in Belgium . American P - 47 Thunderbolt s would have to turn back at Eupen , about 10 miles short of the German border . Most of the bombers on the Regensburg - Schweinfurt mission were B - 17Fs . Their guns provided overlapping cones of fire from the waist and from the top , belly , and tail turrets , but the B - 17F did not have the nose turret that came on the B - 17G . Handheld guns firing to the sides from " cheek " blisters did not close the gap . " We definitely lack firepower in the nose of the B - 17 " , LeMay said . The Luftwaffe knew this and exploited the advantage of the head - on attacks . Luftwaffe Maj . Anton Hackl , who ended the war with 192 credited victories , explained , " If one came in from the rear , there was a long period , closing from 1 , 000 meters to our firing range of 400 meters , when the bombers were firing at us but we could not fire at them . This was a very dangerous time , and we lost a lot of aircraft trying to attack that way . " When the B - 17 was hit from the front , its armor gave little protection , and four or five 20 - mm hits were enough to knock down the plane . Moreover , the high closing speed gave them little chance to engage the fighters . The combined closing speed of nearly 500 mph allowed German pilots time for only a half - second burst of fire , commencing at 500 yards , but if it was accurate , it was sufficient . Major Hackl asserted , " The head - on attack was the only way to knock down the bombers . One accurate half - second burst from head - on and a victory was guaranteed . " The Schweinfurt – Regensburg Raid . On the morning of Aug . 17 , a thick fog covered East Anglia , where the B - 17 bases were . LeMay ' s division had been scheduled to launch at 5 : 45 a . m . Takeoff was delayed for an hour , then for an additional half - hour . The mission called for LeMay ' s B - 17s to cross the Alps after bombing Regensberg and land in Algeria . Further delay would mean running out of daylight before reaching the landing bases in Africa . Fortunately , LeMay had drilled his crews for a month in bad weather instrument takeoffs , and the first bomber was in the air at 7 : 15 a . m . The mission plan called for Williams ' strike force to return to England , so a nighttime return was not an issue . In addition , the pilots of the 1st Air Division were not proficient in instrument takeoff . They finally launched five hours later than planned , more than four hours - — instead of nine minutes — - behind LeMay ' s division , which was almost to Regensburg before the first Schweinfurt bomber took off . Because of the five - hour fog delay , Williams and the First Division made a change that would have repercussions later . The original plan was for them to fly past Schweinfurt , turn , and attack from the east . This added 17 minutes to their approach , but it allowed them to make their bomb run at midmorning with the sun at their backs . However , because of the long delay , they would arrive at Schwein - furt in the afternoon rather than in the morning . The sun would be more to the west than to the east . If they stuck to the plan , they would spend 17 dangerous and unnecessary minutes in the target area and they would be attacking into the sun . Consequently , they switched directions to make the bomb run from west - to - east rather than east - to - west . The first of the Schweinfurt B - 17s took off at 11 : 20 a . m . and a procession of 222 aircraft crossed the coast of the continent . Williams himself flew in the B - 17 " Vicious Virgin " ( B - 17F 42 - 5341 ) , piloted by Lt . A . C . Strickland of the 427th Bomb Squadron . The German fighters , which had earlier struck LeMay ' s B - 17s , were now refueled , rearmed , and waiting . More than 300 German fighters attacked Williams ' aircraft during the flight to Schweinfurt . Williams ' B - 17 force sustained heavy casualties and lost 22 B - 17s . Williams himself took over a machine gun in a cheek blister and fired it until the barrel burned out . As Williams ' bombers neared their target , the Germans broke off to refuel in preparation to attack the bombers on the return leg of their trip . The strike force reached Schweinfurt at 2 : 59 p . m . Williams ' planes encountered heavy flak over the city . As they made their bomb runs , three more B - 17s were lost . Bombing accuracy was not as good as hoped for . Some of the crews were confused by the change in direction of approach to the target . The first three groups had clear bomb runs but the other six had problems and many of their bombs fell wide . Turning for home , Williams again encountered German fighters . In a running battle , the Luftwaffe downed another 11 B - 17s . Reaching Belgium , the bombers were met by a covering force of Allied fighters which allowed them to complete their trip to England relatively unmolested . Results of the Schweinfurt Raid . Williams lost 36 aircraft on the raid while LeMay lost 24 aircraft . Of the 601 crewmen lost , 102 were killed . Many — 381 of them — were taken prisoner , while others evaded capture , were interned , or were rescued from the sea . The German armaments minister , Albert Speer , said in his memoirs that the Schweinfurt bombing caused a 38 percent drop in ball bearing production . After the war , Major Major General Haywood S . Hansell wrote about Williams , Later Action . Williams commanded the 1st Bomb Division in the first largescale daylight attack against Berlin on March 6 , 1944 . Return to U . S . . Williams returned to the United States in October 1944 and was named Commanding General of the 2nd Air Force , Colorado Springs , Colorado . In this capacity he oversaw the training of B - 29 crews for service in the Pacific Theater . Williams served as 2nd Air Force Commanding General until November 1945 . Awards and decorations . Williams ' decorations from World War II included the Distinguished Service Cross , Great Britain ' s Order of the Bath , and France ' s Legion of Honor and Croix de guerre . The Distinguished Service Cross ( DSC ) is the second highest military decoration that can be awarded to a member of the United States Army , awarded for extreme gallantry and risk of life in actual combat with an armed enemy force . Later life . Williams retired from the U . S . Army on July 1 , 1946 as a Major General . His retirement was based on disability received in the line of duty . He lived in San Antonio , Texas during retirement . He died on Feb . 10 , 1977 at the age of 75 . Memorial . A sculpture by New Mexico artist Duke Sundt honoring Williams and two other World War II heroes was dedicated in February 2006 at the courthouse in Williams ' hometown of Albany , Texas . The Albany Heroes ' Monument honors Williams , Lt . Col . William E . Dyess , namesake of Dyess Air Force Base , and Rear Admiral Emory Arden Grantham , who supervised wartime Naval ship repairs at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard . The life size bas relief portraits are accompanied by biographical information on plaques . The memorial lists Williams ' rank as Lieutenant General and says that he retired in the 1950s .