The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Navy Seaman 1st Class (S1c) Paul E. Newton, 20, killed during World War II, was accounted for on Sept. 30, 2024.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Newton was assigned to the battleship USS West Virginia, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was attacked by Japanese aircraft. The USS West Virginia sustained multiple torpedo hits, but timely counter-flooding measures taken by the crew prevented it from capsizing, and it came to rest on the shallow harbor floor. The attack on the ship resulted in the deaths of 106 crewmen, including Newton.
This is an initial release. The complete accounting of Newton’s case will be published once the family receives their full briefing.
https://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpg00adminhttps://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpgadmin2025-04-23 15:58:432025-04-23 15:58:44Seaman 1st Class Paul E. Newton
Soldier Accounted For From Korean War (Mestas, O.)
WASHINGTON –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Army Sgt. Orace J. Mestas, 22, of Trinidad, Colorado, killed during the Korean War, was accounted for Jan. 31, 2024.
Mestas’s family recently received their full briefing on his identification, therefore, additional details on his identification can be shared.
In April 1951, Mestas was assigned to I Company, 3rd Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division. He was reported missing in action near Chip’o-ri, North Korea, after his unit’s position was attacked on April 25. The U.S. Army determined him to be nonrecoverable on Jan. 16, 1956.
In April 1951, members from the 565th Quartermaster Graves Registration Company recovered remains about 8.5 miles southeast of Chipo-ri and designated one set as Unknown X-1381 Tanggok. In 1955 those remains were transferred to the Central Identification Unit (CIU) in Kokura, Japan for reprocessing. After the remains were reexamined by the CIU, Unknown X-1381 could not be identified. The remains were subsequently buried as an unknown in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, also known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu.
In July 2018, DPAA proposed a plan to disinter 652 Korean War Unknowns interred at the Punchbowl. In March 2019, DPAA personnel disinterred Unknown X-1381 as part of Phase One of the Korean War Disinterment Plan and sent the remains to the DPAA laboratory for analysis.
To identify Unknown X-1381 as Mestas, scientists from DPAA used dental and anthropological analysis, as well as chest radiograph and other circumstantial evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA analysis.
Mestas’s name is recorded on the Courts of the Missing at the Punchbowl, along with the others who are still missing from the Korean War. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Mestas will be buried in Trinidad, Colorado, in June 2025.
For family and funeral information, contact the Army Casualty Office at (800) 892-2490.
https://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpg00adminhttps://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpgadmin2025-04-23 15:57:562025-04-23 15:57:57Sgt. Orace J. Mestas
Soldier Accounted For From Korean War (Curley, G.)
WASHINGTON –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Army Pfc. George Armand Curley Jr., 18, of Laconia, New Hampshire, killed during the Korean War, was accounted for March 3, 2025.
Curley’s family recently received their full briefing on his identification, therefore, additional details on his identification can be shared.
In December 1950, Curley was assigned to Headquarters and Service Company, 2nd Engineer Combat Battalion, 2nd Infantry Division. Curley was reported missing in action on Nov. 30, 1950, in the vicinity of Sonchu, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK). Based on information from returning POWs, it was determined that Curley died in captivity at Camp 5 near Pyoktong, DPRK in March 1951.
September and October 1954 during Operation GLORY, the United Nations Command and the Chinese Communist Forces exchanged the remains of fallen service personnel. After those remains were processed by the Central Identification Unit (CIU) Laboratory at Kokura, Japan, the CIU was unable to positively associate any loss with Curley. In 1956, all unidentified remains, including one designated as Unknown X-14692, were transferred to the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific (the Punchbowl) in Honolulu, Hawaii and interred there as Unknowns.
In July 2018, the DPAA proposed a plan to disinter 652 Korean War Unknowns from the Punchbowl. On Nov. 18, 2019, DPAA personnel disinterred Unknown X-14692 as part of Phase Two of the Korean War Disinterment Plan and sent the remains to the DPAA laboratory for analysis.
To identify Curley, DPAA scientists used dental and anthropological analysis, as well as a chest radiograph. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA and mitochondrial genome sequence analysis.
Curley’s name is recorded on the Courts of the Missing at the Punchbowl, along with the others who are still missing from the Korean War. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Curley will be buried in Laconia, New Hampshire in June 2025.
https://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpg00adminhttps://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpgadmin2025-04-23 15:57:042025-04-23 15:57:05Pfc. George Armand Curley Jr.
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Army Pvt. Willard D. Merrill, 21, of Dover-Foxcroft, Maine, who was captured and died as a prisoner of war during World War II, was accounted for August 19, 2024.
Merrill’s family recently received their full briefing on his identification, therefore, additional details on his identification can be shared.
In late 1941, Merrill was a member of the 2nd Observation Squadron when Japanese forces invaded the Philippine Islands in December. Intense fighting continued until the surrender of the Bataan peninsula on April 9, 1942, and of Corregidor Island on May 6, 1942.
Thousands of U.S. and Filipino service members were captured and interned at POW camps. Merrill was among those reported captured when U.S. forces in Bataan surrendered to the Japanese. They were subjected to the 65-mile Bataan Death March and then held at the Cabanatuan POW Camp #1. More than 2,500 POWs perished in this camp during the war.
According to prison camp and other historical records, Merrill died Nov. 14, 1942, and was buried along with other deceased prisoners in the local Cabanatuan Camp Cemetery in Common Grave 305.
Following the war, American Graves Registration Service (AGRS) personnel exhumed those buried at the Cabanatuan cemetery and relocated the remains to a temporary U.S. military mausoleum near Manila. In 1947, the AGRS examined the remains in an attempt to identify them. Three sets of remains from Common Grave 305 were declared unidentifiable. These unidentified remains were buried at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial (MACM) as Unknowns.
In January 2019, as part of the Cabanatuan Project, DPAA exhumed the remains associated with Common Grave 305 and sent them to the DPAA laboratory for analysis.
To identify Merrill’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental and anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA and Y-chromosome DNA analysis.
Although interred as an Unknown in MACM, Merrill’s grave was meticulously cared for over the past 70 years by the American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC). Today, Merrill is memorialized on the Walls of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial in the Philippines. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Merrill will be buried in Dover-Foxcroft, Maine, in June 2025.
https://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpg00adminhttps://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpgadmin2025-04-23 15:56:222025-04-23 15:56:23Pvt. Willard D. Merrill
Soldier Accounted For From Korean War (Estrada, A.)
WASHINGTON –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that Army Cpl. Albert J. Estrada, 17, killed during the Korean War, was accounted for April 16, 2025.
In late 1950, Estrada was a member of Battery B, 57th Field Artillery Battalion, 31st Regimental Combat Team, 7th Infantry Division. He was reported missing in action Dec. 6, 1950, in the vicinity of Hagaru-ri near the Jangjin (Chosin) Reservoir, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. The U.S. Army did not receive any information to indicate that he was ever held as a Prisoner of War and on Dec. 31, 1953, issued a presumptive finding of death. He was declared non-recoverable on Jan. 16, 1956.
This is an initial release. The complete accounting of Estrada’s case will be published once the family receives their full briefing.
https://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpg00adminhttps://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpgadmin2025-04-23 15:55:182025-04-23 15:55:19Cpl. Albert J. Estrada
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Army Air Forces 2nd Lt. Byron R. Michener, 23, killed during World War II was accounted for April 15, 2025.
In the summer of 1943, Michener served as a bombardier with the 409th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy), 93rd Bombardment Group (Heavy), 9th Air Force. On Aug. 1, the B-24 Liberator aircraft Michener was on crashed after encountering enemy anti-aircraft fire during Operation TIDAL WAVE, the largest bombing mission against the oil fields and refineries in Ploiesti, Romania. His remains were not identified following the war.
This is an initial release. The complete accounting of Michener’s case will be published once the family receives their full briefing.
https://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpg00adminhttps://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpgadmin2025-04-23 15:54:532025-04-23 15:54:542nd Lt. Byron R. Michener
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Army 1st Lt. Robert P. Aikman, 40, killed during World War II, was accounted for April 2, 2025.
In January 1945, Aikman was assigned to Battery D, 1st Battalion, 59th Coastal Artillery Corps. He was held as a prisoner of war by the Empire of Japan in the Philippines from 1942 to 1944 when the Japanese military moved POWs to Manila for transport to Japan aboard the transport ship Oryoku Maru. Unaware the allied POWs were on board, a U.S. carrier-borne aircraft attacked the Oryoku Maru, which eventually sank in Subic Bay. After a series of land and naval transfers, Aikman was transported to Takao, Formosa, aboard the Enoura Maru. The Japanese government reported that Aikman died on January 9, 1945, when U.S. forces sank the Enoura Maru. He was declared non-recoverable on March 22, 1949.
This is an initial release. The complete accounting of Aikman’s case will be published once the family receives their full briefing.
https://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpg00adminhttps://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpgadmin2025-04-23 15:54:282025-04-23 15:54:301st Lt. Robert P. Aikman
Soldier Accounted For From Korean War (Manring, G.)
WASHINGTON –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Army Master Sgt. George C. Manring, 21, of Lake Wales, Florida, killed in action during the Korean War, was accounted for March 17, 2025.
In September 1950, Manring was assigned to B Battery, 57th Field Artillery Battalion, 31st Regimental Combat Team, 7th Infantry Division. He was reported missing in action on Dec. 6, 1950, in the vicinity of Hagaru-ri, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (D.P.R.K., or North Korea), during the Battle Chosin Reservoir. Absent evidence of Manring’s continued survival, the U.S. Army issued a presumptive finding of death of Dec. 31, 1953.
On July 27, 2018, following the summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un in June 2018, the North Korean government turned over 55 transfer cases, purported to contain the remains of U.S. service members killed during the Korean War. Those remains arrived at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii on Aug. 1, 2018, and were subsequently accessioned into the DPAA laboratory for identification.
To identify Manring’s remains, scientists from DPAA used anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial and material evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA analysis and nuclear single nucleotide polymorphism.
Manring will be buried in Lake Wales, Florida, in May 2025.
https://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpg00adminhttps://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpgadmin2025-04-23 15:53:592025-04-23 15:54:01Master Sgt. George C. Manring
Soldier Accounted For From World War II (Thornton, I.)
WASHINGTON –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Army Sgt. Ivor D. Thornton, 34, of Martinsville, Virginia, killed during World War II, was accounted for March 10, 2025.
On June 6, 1944, “D-Day,” Sgt. Thornton landed on Omaha Beach with Company H, 2nd Battalion, 116th Infantry Regimental Combat Team, 29th Infantry Division. As part of the second wave of the invasion, Company H disembarked its landing craft around 7:00 a.m. Fellow soldiers last observed Sgt. Thornton wading ashore, but he was not seen thereafter.
On June 7, 1944, the day after the invasion, Thornton’s unit unsuccessfully searched for him. Consequently, the War Department listed him as missing in action. On June 8, 1944, graves registration personnel recovered a set of remains from Omaha Beach that they were unable to identify. They interred these remains in U.S. Military Cemetery (USMC) Saint-Laurent-sur-Mer, adjacent to Omaha Beach, and designated them X-159 St. Laurent (X-159).
Graves registration personnel attempted to identify X-159 in March 1945, but they could not associate the body with a specific casualty. In June 1947, analysts with the American Graves Registration Command (AGRC) were also unable to identify X-159. On March 3, 1949, a board of AGRC officers recommended the remains be declared unidentifiable.
In April 2022, Thornton’s family, along with the family of another missing Soldier, requested X-159 be disinterred and compared to Thornton and the other Soldier. In September 2023, the Department of Defense and American Battle Monuments Commission exhumed the remains of X-159 and transferred them to the DPAA laboratory for analysis.
To identify Thornton’s remains, the DPAA scientific staff conducted dental and anthropological analyses. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System performed mitochondrial DNA analysis. DPAA would like to thank the Bedford Boys Tribute Center for its assistance with this case.
Thornton’s name is recorded on the Walls of the Missing at Normandy American Cemetery in Colleville-sur-Mer, France, along with others still missing from WWII. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Thornton will be buried in Arlington National Cemetery on a date yet to be determined.
https://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpg00adminhttps://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpgadmin2025-04-23 15:52:382025-04-23 15:52:39Sgt. Ivor D. Thornton
USS California Sailor Accounted For From World War II (Bowden, E.)
WASHINGTON –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Navy Fireman 1st Class Edward D. Bowden, 29, killed during World War II, was accounted for on April 1, 2025.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Bowden was assigned to the battleship USS California, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was attacked by Japanese aircraft. The USS California sustained multiple torpedo and bomb hits, which caused it catch fire and slowly flood. The attack on the ship resulted in the deaths of 103 crewmen, including Bowden.
This is an initial release. The complete accounting of Bowden’s case will be published once the family receives their full briefing.
https://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpg00adminhttps://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpgadmin2025-04-23 15:51:582025-04-23 15:51:59Fireman 1st Class Edward D. Bowden
Seaman 1st Class Paul E. Newton
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | April 23, 2025
Sailor Accounted For From WWII (Newton, P.)
WASHINGTON –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Navy Seaman 1st Class (S1c) Paul E. Newton, 20, killed during World War II, was accounted for on Sept. 30, 2024.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Newton was assigned to the battleship USS West Virginia, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was attacked by Japanese aircraft. The USS West Virginia sustained multiple torpedo hits, but timely counter-flooding measures taken by the crew prevented it from capsizing, and it came to rest on the shallow harbor floor. The attack on the ship resulted in the deaths of 106 crewmen, including Newton.
This is an initial release. The complete accounting of Newton’s case will be published once the family receives their full briefing.
Sgt. Orace J. Mestas
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | April 22, 2025
Soldier Accounted For From Korean War (Mestas, O.)
WASHINGTON –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Army Sgt. Orace J. Mestas, 22, of Trinidad, Colorado, killed during the Korean War, was accounted for Jan. 31, 2024.
Mestas’s family recently received their full briefing on his identification, therefore, additional details on his identification can be shared.
In April 1951, Mestas was assigned to I Company, 3rd Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division. He was reported missing in action near Chip’o-ri, North Korea, after his unit’s position was attacked on April 25. The U.S. Army determined him to be nonrecoverable on Jan. 16, 1956.
In April 1951, members from the 565th Quartermaster Graves Registration Company recovered remains about 8.5 miles southeast of Chipo-ri and designated one set as Unknown X-1381 Tanggok. In 1955 those remains were transferred to the Central Identification Unit (CIU) in Kokura, Japan for reprocessing. After the remains were reexamined by the CIU, Unknown X-1381 could not be identified. The remains were subsequently buried as an unknown in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, also known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu.
In July 2018, DPAA proposed a plan to disinter 652 Korean War Unknowns interred at the Punchbowl. In March 2019, DPAA personnel disinterred Unknown X-1381 as part of Phase One of the Korean War Disinterment Plan and sent the remains to the DPAA laboratory for analysis.
To identify Unknown X-1381 as Mestas, scientists from DPAA used dental and anthropological analysis, as well as chest radiograph and other circumstantial evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA analysis.
Mestas’s name is recorded on the Courts of the Missing at the Punchbowl, along with the others who are still missing from the Korean War. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Mestas will be buried in Trinidad, Colorado, in June 2025.
For family and funeral information, contact the Army Casualty Office at (800) 892-2490.
Pfc. George Armand Curley Jr.
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | April 22, 2025
Soldier Accounted For From Korean War (Curley, G.)
WASHINGTON –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Army Pfc. George Armand Curley Jr., 18, of Laconia, New Hampshire, killed during the Korean War, was accounted for March 3, 2025.
Curley’s family recently received their full briefing on his identification, therefore, additional details on his identification can be shared.
In December 1950, Curley was assigned to Headquarters and Service Company, 2nd Engineer Combat Battalion, 2nd Infantry Division. Curley was reported missing in action on Nov. 30, 1950, in the vicinity of Sonchu, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK). Based on information from returning POWs, it was determined that Curley died in captivity at Camp 5 near Pyoktong, DPRK in March 1951.
September and October 1954 during Operation GLORY, the United Nations Command and the Chinese Communist Forces exchanged the remains of fallen service personnel. After those remains were processed by the Central Identification Unit (CIU) Laboratory at Kokura, Japan, the CIU was unable to positively associate any loss with Curley. In 1956, all unidentified remains, including one designated as Unknown X-14692, were transferred to the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific (the Punchbowl) in Honolulu, Hawaii and interred there as Unknowns.
In July 2018, the DPAA proposed a plan to disinter 652 Korean War Unknowns from the Punchbowl. On Nov. 18, 2019, DPAA personnel disinterred Unknown X-14692 as part of Phase Two of the Korean War Disinterment Plan and sent the remains to the DPAA laboratory for analysis.
To identify Curley, DPAA scientists used dental and anthropological analysis, as well as a chest radiograph. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA and mitochondrial genome sequence analysis.
Curley’s name is recorded on the Courts of the Missing at the Punchbowl, along with the others who are still missing from the Korean War. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Curley will be buried in Laconia, New Hampshire in June 2025.
Pvt. Willard D. Merrill
Recently Identifiedress Release | April 22, 2025
Soldier Accounted for from WWII (Merrill, W.)
WASHINGTON –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Army Pvt. Willard D. Merrill, 21, of Dover-Foxcroft, Maine, who was captured and died as a prisoner of war during World War II, was accounted for August 19, 2024.
Merrill’s family recently received their full briefing on his identification, therefore, additional details on his identification can be shared.
In late 1941, Merrill was a member of the 2nd Observation Squadron when Japanese forces invaded the Philippine Islands in December. Intense fighting continued until the surrender of the Bataan peninsula on April 9, 1942, and of Corregidor Island on May 6, 1942.
Thousands of U.S. and Filipino service members were captured and interned at POW camps. Merrill was among those reported captured when U.S. forces in Bataan surrendered to the Japanese. They were subjected to the 65-mile Bataan Death March and then held at the Cabanatuan POW Camp #1. More than 2,500 POWs perished in this camp during the war.
According to prison camp and other historical records, Merrill died Nov. 14, 1942, and was buried along with other deceased prisoners in the local Cabanatuan Camp Cemetery in Common Grave 305.
Following the war, American Graves Registration Service (AGRS) personnel exhumed those buried at the Cabanatuan cemetery and relocated the remains to a temporary U.S. military mausoleum near Manila. In 1947, the AGRS examined the remains in an attempt to identify them. Three sets of remains from Common Grave 305 were declared unidentifiable. These unidentified remains were buried at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial (MACM) as Unknowns.
In January 2019, as part of the Cabanatuan Project, DPAA exhumed the remains associated with Common Grave 305 and sent them to the DPAA laboratory for analysis.
To identify Merrill’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental and anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA and Y-chromosome DNA analysis.
Although interred as an Unknown in MACM, Merrill’s grave was meticulously cared for over the past 70 years by the American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC). Today, Merrill is memorialized on the Walls of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial in the Philippines. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Merrill will be buried in Dover-Foxcroft, Maine, in June 2025.
Cpl. Albert J. Estrada
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | April 21, 2025
Soldier Accounted For From Korean War (Estrada, A.)
WASHINGTON –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that Army Cpl. Albert J. Estrada, 17, killed during the Korean War, was accounted for April 16, 2025.
In late 1950, Estrada was a member of Battery B, 57th Field Artillery Battalion, 31st Regimental Combat Team, 7th Infantry Division. He was reported missing in action Dec. 6, 1950, in the vicinity of Hagaru-ri near the Jangjin (Chosin) Reservoir, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. The U.S. Army did not receive any information to indicate that he was ever held as a Prisoner of War and on Dec. 31, 1953, issued a presumptive finding of death. He was declared non-recoverable on Jan. 16, 1956.
This is an initial release. The complete accounting of Estrada’s case will be published once the family receives their full briefing.
2nd Lt. Byron R. Michener
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | April 21, 2025
Airman Accounted For From WWII (Michener, B.)
WASHINGTON –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Army Air Forces 2nd Lt. Byron R. Michener, 23, killed during World War II was accounted for April 15, 2025.
In the summer of 1943, Michener served as a bombardier with the 409th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy), 93rd Bombardment Group (Heavy), 9th Air Force. On Aug. 1, the B-24 Liberator aircraft Michener was on crashed after encountering enemy anti-aircraft fire during Operation TIDAL WAVE, the largest bombing mission against the oil fields and refineries in Ploiesti, Romania. His remains were not identified following the war.
This is an initial release. The complete accounting of Michener’s case will be published once the family receives their full briefing.
1st Lt. Robert P. Aikman
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | April 17, 2025
Soldier Accounted For From WWII (Aikman, R.)
WASHINGTON –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Army 1st Lt. Robert P. Aikman, 40, killed during World War II, was accounted for April 2, 2025.
In January 1945, Aikman was assigned to Battery D, 1st Battalion, 59th Coastal Artillery Corps. He was held as a prisoner of war by the Empire of Japan in the Philippines from 1942 to 1944 when the Japanese military moved POWs to Manila for transport to Japan aboard the transport ship Oryoku Maru. Unaware the allied POWs were on board, a U.S. carrier-borne aircraft attacked the Oryoku Maru, which eventually sank in Subic Bay. After a series of land and naval transfers, Aikman was transported to Takao, Formosa, aboard the Enoura Maru. The Japanese government reported that Aikman died on January 9, 1945, when U.S. forces sank the Enoura Maru. He was declared non-recoverable on March 22, 1949.
This is an initial release. The complete accounting of Aikman’s case will be published once the family receives their full briefing.
Master Sgt. George C. Manring
Recently Identifiedress Release | April 17, 2025
Soldier Accounted For From Korean War (Manring, G.)
WASHINGTON –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Army Master Sgt. George C. Manring, 21, of Lake Wales, Florida, killed in action during the Korean War, was accounted for March 17, 2025.
In September 1950, Manring was assigned to B Battery, 57th Field Artillery Battalion, 31st Regimental Combat Team, 7th Infantry Division. He was reported missing in action on Dec. 6, 1950, in the vicinity of Hagaru-ri, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (D.P.R.K., or North Korea), during the Battle Chosin Reservoir. Absent evidence of Manring’s continued survival, the U.S. Army issued a presumptive finding of death of Dec. 31, 1953.
On July 27, 2018, following the summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un in June 2018, the North Korean government turned over 55 transfer cases, purported to contain the remains of U.S. service members killed during the Korean War. Those remains arrived at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii on Aug. 1, 2018, and were subsequently accessioned into the DPAA laboratory for identification.
To identify Manring’s remains, scientists from DPAA used anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial and material evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA analysis and nuclear single nucleotide polymorphism.
Manring will be buried in Lake Wales, Florida, in May 2025.
Sgt. Ivor D. Thornton
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | April 17, 2025
Soldier Accounted For From World War II (Thornton, I.)
WASHINGTON –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Army Sgt. Ivor D. Thornton, 34, of Martinsville, Virginia, killed during World War II, was accounted for March 10, 2025.
On June 6, 1944, “D-Day,” Sgt. Thornton landed on Omaha Beach with Company H, 2nd Battalion, 116th Infantry Regimental Combat Team, 29th Infantry Division. As part of the second wave of the invasion, Company H disembarked its landing craft around 7:00 a.m. Fellow soldiers last observed Sgt. Thornton wading ashore, but he was not seen thereafter.
On June 7, 1944, the day after the invasion, Thornton’s unit unsuccessfully searched for him. Consequently, the War Department listed him as missing in action. On June 8, 1944, graves registration personnel recovered a set of remains from Omaha Beach that they were unable to identify. They interred these remains in U.S. Military Cemetery (USMC) Saint-Laurent-sur-Mer, adjacent to Omaha Beach, and designated them X-159 St. Laurent (X-159).
Graves registration personnel attempted to identify X-159 in March 1945, but they could not associate the body with a specific casualty. In June 1947, analysts with the American Graves Registration Command (AGRC) were also unable to identify X-159. On March 3, 1949, a board of AGRC officers recommended the remains be declared unidentifiable.
In April 2022, Thornton’s family, along with the family of another missing Soldier, requested X-159 be disinterred and compared to Thornton and the other Soldier. In September 2023, the Department of Defense and American Battle Monuments Commission exhumed the remains of X-159 and transferred them to the DPAA laboratory for analysis.
To identify Thornton’s remains, the DPAA scientific staff conducted dental and anthropological analyses. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System performed mitochondrial DNA analysis. DPAA would like to thank the Bedford Boys Tribute Center for its assistance with this case.
Thornton’s name is recorded on the Walls of the Missing at Normandy American Cemetery in Colleville-sur-Mer, France, along with others still missing from WWII. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Thornton will be buried in Arlington National Cemetery on a date yet to be determined.
Fireman 1st Class Edward D. Bowden
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | April 16, 2025
USS California Sailor Accounted For From World War II (Bowden, E.)
WASHINGTON –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Navy Fireman 1st Class Edward D. Bowden, 29, killed during World War II, was accounted for on April 1, 2025.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Bowden was assigned to the battleship USS California, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was attacked by Japanese aircraft. The USS California sustained multiple torpedo and bomb hits, which caused it catch fire and slowly flood. The attack on the ship resulted in the deaths of 103 crewmen, including Bowden.
This is an initial release. The complete accounting of Bowden’s case will be published once the family receives their full briefing.