William Haugen was born on 13th August 1922 in Strongfield, Saskatchewan, he was the son of Olai Nelson and Ethyl Katie (nee Mills) Haugen, his father was born in Norway and his mother originally from Oregon, USA. Willard attended Pleasant Ridge school and was working on a farm as a mechanic at Loreburn when he enlisted for RCAF service in Regina on 30th July 1941. After basic training in Canada he arrived in the UK in November 1942. Having then further trained at 7 AGS (beginning 16th January 1943), 22 OTU (beginning 23rd February 1943) and 1659 HCU (beginning 25th April 1943) he was posted to 408 Squadron on 16th May 1943. He was the rear gunner in Halifax JD174 when the incident on the North Yorkshire Moors occurred on 14th July 1943. Many of this 408 Squadron crew were the posted to 405 Squadron PFF not long after baling out of Halifax JD174, he was posted there on 24th July 1943.
F/Sgt Willard Haugen was sadly killed serving with 405 Squadron only weeks after his incident on the North Yorkshire Moors. On the night of 17th / 18th August 1943 he was on board Lancaster HR817 tasked with bombing the Peenemunde V-2 rocket test site. Their aircraft left Gransden Lodge at 20.34hrs but strayed too far south on the outbound leg of the flight, the aircraft was shot down by flak over Flensburg and crashed nearby at Friedenshugel. He and his then crew members are buried in Kiel War Cemetery, Germany. He was twenty three years old. Saskatchewan province named geological features after it's wardead but there appears to have been no feature named in his honour.