William Thomas Whisner Jr. (October 17, 1923 – July 21, 1989) was a career officer and pilot in the United States Air Force, retiring as a colonel with 30 years of military service. He was a fighter ace with Army Air Forces over Europe in World War II and a jet fighter ace with the Air Force in the Korean War.

Although best known for his credited destruction of 22½ aircraft in aerial combat and being one of only seven U.S. combat pilots to become an ace in two wars, Whisner commanded the 48th Tactical Fighter Wing, before retiring in 1972.

William T. Whisner Jr. was born in Shreveport, Louisiana, on October 17, 1923, to William Whisner, Sr. and Eloise Bickham Whisner. In his youth, Whisner was an active member of the local Boy Scouts of America, eventually attaining the rank of Eagle Scout in that program.

Growing up in Shreveport, Whisner attended C. E. Byrd High School, becoming active in the school's Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps. It was during this involvement that Whisner developed an interest in becoming a military aviator.

Immediately upon graduating from high school, Whisner applied for the United States Army Air Forces cadet program, being accepted and began his training on 8 April 1942. Whisner first began Primary Flight Training at the Lafayette Municipal Airport in Lafayette, Louisiana, getting his first flight time aboard PT-17 and PT-19 trainer aircraft. Following the successful completion of this training, he underwent Basic Combat Training at Greenville Army Airfield in Greenville, Mississippi. After this training, Whisner attended Advanced Flight Training at Napier Field, Alabama flying the AT-6 Texan. Whisner completed his training on 16 February 1943 and was commissioned a second lieutenant in the United States Army.

Whisner's first assignment in the Air Corps was sent to Westover Field in Springfield, Massachusetts, for operational training, where he learned to fly the P-47 Thunderbolt fighter aircraft. With this training complete, he was assighed to the 34th Fighter Squadron at LaGuardia Field in New York City, New York. The squadron was in the process of training for deployment in support of World War II. The unit was later redesignated the 487th Fighter Squadron, 352nd Fighter Group.

With the unit's training completed, the 352nd Fighter Group boarded the troopship RMS Queen Elizabeth in June 1943. The group landed in the United Kingdom, and was assigned to RAF Bodney in Watton, Norfolk, under the operational control of the 67th Fighter Wing, VIII Fighter Command. Throughout the summer, Whisner and his fellow aviators were occupied in training flights over England, where they acclimated to flying in unfamiliar weather. This training was completed on 9 September 1943 and the group flew its first combat mission on that date.

From September 1943 through January 1944, Whisner and the group saw limited success, as the P-47s were limited in range and few Luftwaffe patrols of Nazi German pilots appeared over Norfolk. In its first four months of short-range patrols, the 352nd Fighter Group had 23 confirmed victories, two probable victories, and two German aircraft damaged.