Major General Frank E. Willis

After his graduation from Clinton High School in 1957, Frank E. Willis was appointed to the newly formed Air Force Academy, where he joined the academy’s third graduating class.

June 7, 1961, held lasting memories for the cadet. Following the graduation ceremony, he married his true love, Clarice.

Willis earned his pilot’s wings in 1962 after training at Vance Air Force Base, Okla. He was assigned to the 305th Air Refueling Squadron as a KC-135 co-pilot at Bunker Hill Air Force Base, Ind. He served as a KC-135 aircraft commander in California before graduating from the Armed Forces Staff College in 1970.

An assignment as C-123 aircraft commander with the 315th Tactical Airlift Wing at Tan Son Nhut and Phan Rang airbases, South Vietnam followed in 1970.

During his service, Willis logged more than 51,000 flying hours in the KC-135, C-123, T-39, C-21, C-141 and C-17. More than 1,000 combat flying hours were accumulated in Vietnam.

His military awards and decorations include the Distinguished Service Medal; Legion of Merit with Oak Leaf Cluster; Meritorious Service Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster; Air Medal with six Oak Leaf Clusters; and the Air Force Commendation Medal and Oak Leaf Cluster.

Willis moved up the military ranks after completing his master’s degree in management from the University of Nebraska in 1973. He was named Brigadier General in 1984 and a Major General in 1989. In 1993, Willis retired after 33 years of service.

Willis died in 2017 in Colorado Springs, CO after a short battle with cancer.