Herbert Albert Webber

1923 - 2015

Herb Webber, 91, passed away Sunday, April 26, 2015, in Arlington, and is now in the loving arms of our Lord Jesus Christ. Funeral Mass: 2 p.m. Thursday at Most Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church in Arlington. An additional funeral will be held at 2 p.m. Thursday, May 7, at West Funeral Home, 401 N. Guadalupe St., Carlsbad, N.M. Interment: Following the Carlsbad service, Herb will be laid to rest in Sunset Garden Cemetery in Carlsbad, N.M. Visitation: 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at Moore Funeral Home in Arlington. Pallbearers: Scott Webber, Derian Webber, Josh Quebe and Paul Koen. Honorary pallbearers: George Van Bortel, Randall Funston, Brent D. Hilliard, Bobby R. Whisenant, John Smale and Chuck Dion. Memorials: In lieu of flowers, please make donations to either the Make-a-Wish Foundation, www.ntx.wish.org, 6655 Deseo, Irving, Texas 75039; Most Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church, 1200 N. Davis, Arlington, Texas 76102; or Community Hospice Of Texas, in care of Texas Health Resources, 612 E. Lamar Blvd., Arlington, Texas 76011. Herb was born Oct. 3, 1923 in Cloquet, Minn., and graduated from Cloquet High School in 1941. Herb was an airline transport pilot, flight instructor and an FAA safety counselor and was type-rated and qualified to fly numerous large and small jets, turbo props and single-engine airplanes. After graduating from high school, Herb joined the United States Army Air Corps where he served honorably in World War II, 1942-1944, and flew the B-17G bomber as a second lieutenant and pilot. While stationed in Carlsbad, N.M., for training, he met and married the love of his life, Geraldine "Gerry" Marie Webber. They were married for 70 years before her passing on March 29, 2015. In 1955, he moved his family to Arlington to begin his career in commercial aviation working for American Airlines flying Boeing 707s and 747s along with several other commercial aircraft. He retired from American Airlines as a captain in 1983. Herb continued to work in the airline industry in various capacities providing training, check rides and flight checks for up-and-coming pilots. In August 1989, Herb accepted a job as captain with TAG flying the Boeing 707-138B for TAG to the Middle East and other parts of the world. He flew for TAG until January 2004. After leaving TAG, from 2004 to 2010, Capt. Webber flew various aircraft, including a Conquest 441-II, one of his favorites, across the U.S.A. as an employee for Hilliard Energy, Ltd. As if Capt. Webber did not have enough to do, from September 2001 to 2014, he also flew for Van Bortel Aircraft. While at Van Bortel he selected pilots, provided check rides for customers and employees, scheduled pilots, performed flight tests on airplanes out of maintenance and picked up new aircraft from the Cessna factory. In his spare time, Capt. Webber was a colonel in the Commemorative (formerly Confederate) Air Force air shows, where he flew the B-17G "Sentimental Journey" and several other World War II aircraft all over the U.S. and Canada. At the time of his death Capt. Webber was the oldest employed corporate pilot in America and had logged over 42,700 hours of flying time. Herb's proudest accomplishments in life were wrapped around Gerry Webber, the love of his life for over 70 years, his three children, his grandchildren and his lifetime love for flying. He was preceded in death by his wife, Gerry; his father, Albert Webber; mother, Irene Webber; brother, Kenneth Webber; sister, Kathleen Ekholm; and grandson, Dax Webber. Survivors: Children, Dennis and wife, Robyn Webber, Michael and wife, Donna Webber, and Karen and husband, John Quebe; grandchildren, Kelly Rutter, Scott Webber, Dru Hollis, Gretchen Koen and Josh Quebe; and eight great-grandchildren.