NEW WINDSOR—William Breunig turned 22 the same day Stewart Field was dedicated—Aug. 28, 1942. Three days later he died in a crash when his training aircraft developed engine trouble.
Members of the American Legion and the Orange County Veterans Coalition dedicated a marker at the corner of International Avenue and Breunig Road on Nov. 21 so people would not forget the young airman.
Breunig was one of the youngest aviation instructors at Stewart Field when he completed basic and advanced aviation training in Texas.
Glenn Marshall, New Windsor historian, says this was not unusual for someone so young to be an aviation instructor. “He had experience because he went to college, he was an aviation buff, and he ended up getting an aviation license. He had flight time at 19.”
Marshall says the planes used for training were well-used. “In the very beginning, they had older aircraft that had a lot of time on them, and the touch and go puts a lot of stress on the planes.”
Three days after the dedication of the airfield, his plane crashed during a training flight. Marshall tells what happened. “On the morning of Aug. 28, 1942 Lt. Breunig was assigned USMA Cadet Richard H. Huser of the second flying class. They took off from Stewart Field shortly before 10 AM on a routine training flight when the BT-13A Vultee trainer began to develop engine trouble. Lt. Breunig was able to maintain flight while he had Cade Hauser bail out.
