In 1942 he enlisted in the United States Army Air Corps Reserve and began pilot training as an aviation cadet at Kelly Field, Texas.

After serving in 1944 as a B-24 pilot in which he completed 30 missions for the Eighth Air Force in England, he returned to the United States.

Flying through adverse weather Schoeffler was receiving directions for an instrument landing by a ground control operator who was actually monitoring another nearby B-36.

When the plane hit the ground the aft section broke off and the open end acted like a giant scoop packing in the snow.

This incident would provide the basis for the 1955 film Strategic Air Command starring James Stewart which Schoeffler served as a consultant.