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Archives at The Museum of Flight


Raymond E. Weber Military Aviation Collection

 Collection
Identifier: 2025-06-12

Contents of the Collection

The Raymond E. Weber Military Aviation Collection holds textual, visual, and audiovisual materials related to Weber's military service as a pilot from World War II until his retirement in 1970. Materials have been arranged chronologically.

The bulk of the collection is textual items and are primarily military orders that cover the span of his military aviation career. The majority are grouped together, but some are grouped by Weber's assignment, such as "B-47 related" and "B-58 training." There are also flight records, his World War II-era pilot rating book, flight log, and identification card; medical reports, training records and materials, checklists, evaluation and qualification forms, discharge and retirement orders, certificates, officer effectiveness reports, pay section forms, correspondence, a copy of his service record, and information about his burial place at Arlington National Cemetery. An empty red plastic binder that originally held maps unrelated to Weber's service is also present. It has the 340th Bombardment Group insignia on the cover.

Of note is a partial typed autobiography, which includes pages 7-32. The autobiography focuses on his military service with little personal background before or after. It begins as Weber joined the military, shares insights on his training and service during World War II, his reserve time after the war, re-enlistment in active duty and continued military service until his retirement.

The collection also has a small number of visual and audiovisual materials, including an original caricature drawing titled "Ray." It depicts Weber in uniform with a cup of coffee. In the background are two aircraft and a windsock, as if seen from a distance. It is signed by the artist, "[illegible] London, England, 1945." Additionally, one black-and-white 8x10-inch photograph is present. The image depicts six unidentified men in front of an obscured aircraft. The aircraft has a visible insignia for Strategic Air Command. There is no accompanying caption or contextual information.

Also present are two audiovisual items: an 8mm film reel labeled "London, England" and a videocassette "The B-58 Hustler, Volume II." These two items are not currently available, pending preservation.

Dates

  • Creation: 1942-1970, 2010

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open for research and is accessible in the Dahlberg Research Center by appointment. The VHS and 8mm film have not been reformatted and may not be viewed at this time. For more information contact us.

Conditions Governing Use

The Museum of Flight (TMOF) Archives is the owner of the physical materials in the archives and makes available reproductions for research, publication, and other uses. Written permission must be obtained from TMOF archives before any publication use. TMOF does not necessarily hold copyright to all of the materials in the collections. In some cases, permission for use may require seeking additional authorization from copyright owners. Consult repository for more details.

Biographical Note: Raymond E. Weber

Raymond E. Weber (1924-2004) was a United States Air Force pilot.

Raymond Elmer Weber was born on February 13, 1924 in Saginaw, Michigan to David H. and Leah M. (Rush) Weber. He spent his early years in Oklahoma and Michigan.

In 1943 he enlisted in the United States Army Air Forces and received his pilot's wings in May 1944. During World War II he was stationed in England. He served as flight officer and pilot through 1946 at which time he joined the Reserves. In 1951, Weber joined the United States Air Force as a pilot where he remained until his retirement at the rank of Lieutenant Colonel on January 1, 1970. During his active duty pilot service, he flew the Boeing B-47 Stratojet and Convair B-58 Hustler and was stationed at various locations, including Bunker Hill Air Force Base (now Grissom Air Force Base) in Indiana, Carswell Air Force Base in Texas, Forbes Air Force Base (now Topeka Regional Airport) and Schilling Air Force Base (now Salina Regional Airport), both in Kansas.

Post-retirement, Weber was a member of the United Methodist Church choir, the Canaveral Chapter of Space Coast Chorus, and the American Historical Society of Germans from Russia.

Weber married Hilda Gillig (1923-2015) in Bowling Green, Ohio on May 10, 1946. The couple had three children; David, Deborah, and Linda. Raymond E. Weber died in Indian Harbour Beach, Florida on June 4, 2004. He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.

Biography derived from collection materials, donor information, and records on Ancestry.com.

Full Extent

1.1 Cubic Feet (2 5-inch legal-size document boxes, 1 videocassette, 1 8 mm film reel)

Language

English

Accruals

No future accruals are expected.

Separated Materials

As part of the archival processing, some items were separated from the archival component and are kept in Objects storage:

  • United States Air Force footlocker
  • Air Crew Jacket, Winter, M-28
  • White flight scarf
  • Winter flight helmet, soft, B9B
  • Garrison cap
  • Brown leather flight gloves
  • K-2B coveralls, flight suit, name badge
  • K-2B coveralls, flight suit, no name badge
  • United States Air Force officers dress hat with emblem
  • Green wool gloves
  • Bunker Hill base Sign
  • Canvas gear bag
  • Military merit medal with ribbon bar and tie tack
  • Combat readiness medal
  • Good Conduct medal with tie tack
  • 8 ribbon cluster bar
  • 5 miniature medal bar
  • Flight computer, MB-9, Navigation
  • Flight computer, CPU-26A/P, Dead Reckoning
  • Flight computer, MB-4, Dead Reckoning
  • Knee board
  • Helmet bag
  • White hard flight helmet
  • 5/P oxygen mask
  • Honorable discharge wallet
  • Navigation plotter


The July 1976 issue of Air Power magazine has been sent to the Library and multiple maps were separated and placed in the Maps and Charts collection. Please inquire for details.

Processing Information

The collection arrived with some materials sorted by the donor. Original order has been maintained and original folder titles are denoted with quotations. All other titles have been devised by the processing archivist. A plastic binder with maps unrelated to the collection was disassembled. The binder remains with the collection for artefactual context as it display a military insignia, however the maps have been separated to the Maps and Charts Collection. One photograph was sleeved.

Title
Guide to the Raymond E. Weber Military Aviation Collection
Status
Completed Level 2
Author
Jenn Parent
Date
2026 April
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Edition statement
1st Edition

Repository Details

Part of the The Museum of Flight Archives Repository

Contact:
9404 East Marginal Way South
Seattle Washington 98108-4097
206-764-5874


The Museum of Flight | 9404 E. Marginal Way South | Seattle WA 98108-4097 | 206-764-5874
Contact us with a research request
curator@museumofflight.org