Chapter 5 - TALLY HO!

On December 23, 1999 Dick Kahler discovered Diana's message from May 1998 that was still posted on the 'wae.com' bulletin board and queried Jim as to her progress. Jim filled him in on the correspondence to date and her frustration with the questions that had arisen from the files received from the government. It didn't take long for the 'tiger' to come alive. He was back online the day after Christmas.

December 26, 1999

Jim-- Tis the day after Christmas and the thoughts of "Uncle Bill" started thru my mind. Let me get some facts in my head. Like Carl the crash site was never found? He went down over Bolzano which I assume is in Northern Italy. Has this story been put in the 1st Fighter News? Who was his wingman? Has anyone in Bolzano been contacted? There are 5 listing in Bolzano for AOL 4 in English 1 in German. We found Bill this way. did anyone check Florence-American Cemetery? It seems that would have been the logical place to take him. Do you have the mission report as to who else was on the mission that may have reported something, other then the 71st? Has she been in contact with Ted Darcy at wreck1@cntn.net? He will cost a few bucks but this one looks tough and we will need all the help we can get. OK, I am hooked, it looks like a project for the coming year. Mail me what you have … or email me what ever else you have. Happy New Year

Dick --------------------------

Jim also let Kahler know that if Diana gave the go-ahead, he was ready to shovel to him the past correspondence with Diana to bring him up to speed on the project.

December 26, 1999

Hi Diana-- In my last message to you, I told you of a message I had received from Dick Kahler, who saw an old entry of yours on the WAE bulletin board. [ ……..] Dick was a driving force on a couple of searches I've been on, including the one for Carl Hoenshell whose ID bracelet was recently found in Bulgaria. [ ……….] I responded to him by forwarding your last message to me re 'Uncle Bill'. Since the recent find in Bulgaria, Dick has not been active in searching any lost fliers, but your bit on 'Uncle Bill' has ignited his itch to get back into the hunt. He is a banker in San Leandro, CA and ………is about to retire in the spring, so his energies are about to be unleashed. If you are willing to have him jump into the hunt, say the word & I will send him past messages between you & I to bring him up to speed. […..] Hope to hear from you. Tally-ho!

Jim ---------------------------

It didn't take long for Diana to jump in with both feet----------

December 27, 1999

Dear Jim, What a great Christmas present, to get back on line after my days off and find your messages waiting for me! Of course you have my permission to pass any information along that you think will help. If it hadn't been for the Internet and the interest of people like you, I wouldn't have known how to get this far. Thankyouthankyouthankyou! ……… Just let me know if you need any more information to get this search going. I can cite chapter and verse on when and where he "went down," but there are gaps in the file between the time he was declared dead, a year later (10/45) and 1948, when the review board declared him non-recoverable. I'd like to know what happened in the interim. To answer a couple of Dick's questions, he is memorialized on the Wall of the Missing at the Florence American Cemetery (I visited there June 1998). And I have been in touch with Ted Darcy, but he asked for the IDPF on Lowell Twedt, who went down in the same crash. I'm waiting for that to be sent to me before I can proceed with him. ………. I'm trying to contain my excitement, but it's very hard. Wish I didn't have to work for a living so I could do more of this kind of research and perhaps help someone else like you've helped me. Are you sure you don't mind being the funnel through which all info flows? I like having you involved because your connections and experience are so valuable. But if you need to get on with your life, I certainly understand. Thank you so very much.

Diana ---------------------------------

The hunt was on! Kahler & Graham got busy on the Internet to scour for contacts in Italy that might lead the team to any local information that might exist about the crashes of three P-38's in the Bolzano area over 55 years ago.

December 27, 1999

To: GenWebTL@aol.com Subject: Bolzano, Italy Can you help us find information on a W.W.II p-38 pilot who went down north of town on 10-20-1944? His name was William Wisner and his aircraft and remains were never found. Perhaps a site has been found and never identified. Do you know of any such finds? Do you know of anyone there that could help?

Dick Kahler San Leandro, CA ----------------------------

January 01, 2000

To: tourism@provincia.bz.it Subject: World War II history of Bolzano region We are seeking the Email addresses of individuals or organizations who might know of U.S. aircraft crashes within a 25 KM radius of Bolzano during October 1944. We would appreciate at least one contact within the area who would be willing to exchange information on the subject with us. We are a group of individuals aiding the relative of a P-38 pilot named William O. Wisner whose airplane crashed about 10 KM northwest of Bolzano on 20 October 1944.

Jim Graham, Seattle, WA USA ----------------------------------------

GenWebTL came back quickly with the recommendation to contact the local newspaper. ……"If I were you, I'd send an e-mail to the Trentino Alto-Adige online newspaper asking for their help. They just might pick up on a human interest story - and this certainly is a human interest story. " They also suggested contacting the provincial military.

January 02, 2000

To: altoadi@tin.it Subject: I need help from Bolzano On October 20, 1944, a P-38 piloted by 2nd Lt. William Wisner crashed about 15 KM northwest of Bolzano. His aircraft nor his remains were ever found. Was your newspaper in operation then? Do you have any information about this event? Is there a local W.W.II historical society there? Can you offer any advise for our assistance? I am attaching a fact sheet to give you the information we have. With the help of people in Bulgaria we were able to find the remains of a pilot who was killed in action 6-10-44. This resulted in closure for the family. We are a group of people that work for free to help others. Would you consider some type of story in your paper?

Dick Kahler San Leandro, CA --------------------------------------------

After a few days of emailing and writing to various tourist, news & government agencies, there were several responses asking for further information and some that expressed regrets that they could not help. Kahler sent Diana a message of encouragement:

January 9, 2000

Diana-- The hooks are in the water now and it is a matter of time till we get a bite. With your letters out, Jim's letters out and about 6 or 8 people that responded by email it is a matter of time until someone takes the time to look for information. Waiting is the most difficult thing we have to do.You are probably like me, patience is not a virtue of mine. We will wait a couple of days and if we don't get a bite we will look around to put more hooks out.

Dick ----------------------------------------------