William R. Mays was born on September 30, 1924. He served in the 20th Bombardment Squadron, 2nd Bomber Group, Heavy, as a Sergeant and Radio Operator of B-17 #42-38096 nicknamed ''Big Time'' during World War II.

On August 29, 1944, the 15th U.S. Army Air Force carried out Mission 263, known as the Air Battle over the White Carpathians, a daylight bombing raid on the Moravská Ostrava industrial complex in German-occupied Moravia, now part of the Czech Republic. The 2nd Bombardment Group’s 20th Bomb Squadron took part in the mission as one of the strike units. One of the aircraft involved was B-17G 42-38096 “Big Time,” which had already completed around sixty-five missions before that day. During the operation, the formation came under intense attack from German fighters over Moravia. “Big Time” was heavily damaged, lost altitude, and eventually crashed near Vsetín / Šanov in the present-day Czech Republic. Of the ten crew members on board, nine were killed in the crash, and only the pilot survived.

Sgt Mays was one of the 28 U.S. airmen laid to rest in a mass grave at Slavicin, Czechoslovakia, before being exhumed and reinterred at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery, San Diego, San Diego County, California, USA.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com, b17flyingfortress.de; ww2aircraft.net