Obituary of Vernon "Vern" Vernelle Piotter

Vernon "Vern" Vernelle Piotter, age 91 and a 46-year resident of Colorado Springs, entered eternal life on November 30, 2015. He is truly loved and will be greatly missed by all who have known him. Vern was born May 27, 1924 in Manawa, Wisconsin to Reinhold and Frieda Piotter as the youngest of six children. He spent his childhood on his family's farm near Manawa during the years of the Great Depression. He graduated from Manawa High School in 1942 and began his career of military service at Fort Sheridan, Illinois in April 1943. Vern entered Aviation Cadet training in August 1943, graduating as a Navigator and Second Lieutenant in the Army Air Corps in June 1944. After completing B-29 combat crew flight training, his crew was transferred to the 73rd Bomb Wing on the island of Saipan in January 1945 and assigned to the B-29 bomber "Coral Queen". He completed 31 combat missions over Japan, including the low-level, nighttime firebomb attacks on the five major industrial cities of Japan and the war-ending August 14th mission on the Osaka Army Arsenal. In 1946, Vern joined the newly organized Strategic Air Command (SAC) and conducted a 6-month cold weather operational flight test of the B-29 in Alaska. In July 1947, he was transferred to Fairchild AFB in Spokane, Washington, where his crew set a B-29 "time and distance" official world record of 23 hours and 5 minutes over a closed course of 4540 nautical miles, with takeoff and landing at Lowry Field, Denver, Colorado. In July 1950, his unit, the 92nd Bomb Group, was transferred to Yokota Air Base, Japan, as the first SAC B-29 unit to see combat in the Korean War, where he flew 31 combat missions. Returning to Fairchild AFB, Vern and his unit transitioned to the B-36 aircraft in 1952 and to the B-52 in 1957. During these crucial "Cold War" years, as a radar navigator/bombardier he performed long periods of standby alert and extended temporary deployments to Guam. In 1961, he was transferred to Glasgow AFB, Montana, as Staff Navigator to the newly activated 91st Bomb Group. In 1964, Vern was assigned to SAC Headquarters in Offutt AFB, Nebraska, with duty on the SAC Airborne Command Post "Looking Glass" aircraft. During this assignment, he received a B.S. degree in Business Management from the University of Nebraska in Omaha, Class of 1966. Vern retired from active military service in July 1969 as a Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Air Force with 26 years of active duty and over 10, 000 hours of flight time. His service decorations include, among others, the Distinguished Flying Cross and multiple awards of the Air Medal. Moving to Colorado Springs in January 1970, Vern began a second career that spanned more than 30 years as a real estate salesman and broker, home builder, and residential and commercial land developer. His enthusiasm for business led him into various business management activities for both himself and others. Throughout his life, he greatly enjoyed singing in church choirs and in barbershop chorus groups. His hobbies included skiing, playing bridge, growing roses, collecting and restoring classic Buicks and Cadillacs, and supporting Air Force Academy Falcon football. Vern was also a longtime member of the 73rd Bomb Wing Association, hosting its second annual reunion in Colorado Springs in 1977 and attending many others throughout his life.Vern was preceded in death by his former wife, Meryl Olson, whom he married in January 1949. He is survived by his two daughters, Cheryl (Terry) Pixley and Laura (Scott) Augustine, both of Colorado Springs; his son, Alison (Nancy) Piotter (Col, USAF (Ret.)), of Fairfax Station, Virginia; his granddaughter, Natalie Ronollo, of Falls Church, Virginia; his cousin, Carolyn Lawrence of Aurora, Colorado; sisters-in-law Irene Piotter of New London, Wisconsin, and Carol Lytle of Dana, North Carolina; and several nieces and nephews. Vern's extended family includes an additional five grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. Memorial service, 2:00PM, Tuesday, December 8, 2015 at First Lutheran Church, 1515 N. Cascade Avenue, Colorado Springs, Colorado 80907, where he was a member for over 35 years. Burial with full military honors will be at Arlington National Cemetery at a later date. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made in Vern's name to the First Lutheran Church Memorial Fund. Funeral Home:The Springs Funeral Services3115 East Platte AvenueColorado Springs, , COUS 80909 Events Service Tuesday, December 8, 2015 12:00AM First Lutheran Church 1515 N. Cascade Avenue Colorado Springs, CO 80907 Phone: 719-328-1793 Final Resting Place Arlington National Cemetery 1 Memorial Avenue Arlington , VA 22211