The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Air Force Sgt. Henry H. Allen Jr., killed during World War II, was accounted for June 20, 2024.
In spring 1944, Allen was assigned to the 732nd Bombardment Squadron, 453rd Bombardment Group, 2nd Combat Bomb Wing, 2nd Air Division, 8th Air Force in the European Theater. On April 8, Allen, the top turret gunner onboard a B-24H “Liberator” Little Joe, was killed in action when his plane was shot down by enemy fighter aircraft fire while on a bombing mission to Brunswick, Germany. Airmen aboard other aircraft flying in formation with Little Joe did not report seeing any crewmembers exiting the aircraft before it crashed in the vicinity of Salzwedel. The crash site could not be located by Allied forces during the war, and the remains of all nine crewmembers, including Allen, were unaccounted for following the war.
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Soldier Accounted for from Korean War (Ryhter, J.)
Washington –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Sgt. John P. Ryhter, 22, of Bedford, Ohio, killed during the Korean War, was accounted for Apr. 8, 2024.
In Dec. 1950, Ryhter was a member of Battery A, 82nd Anti-Aircraft Artillery Automatic Weapons Battalion, 2nd Infantry Division. He was reported missing in action after his unit engaged in intensive combat actions against the Chinese People’s Volunteer Army in the vicinity of Kunu-ri, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, during the Battle of Ch’ongch’on River. At the time the circumstances for Ryhter’s loss were not immediately known, and there was never any evidence that he was a prisoner of war. The Army issued a presumptive finding of death on Dec. 31, 1953.
Following the war, in 1954, the opposing nations reached an agreement to exchange war dead, the execution of which was known as Operation GLORY. One set of Unknown remains, designated X-14632 OP GLORY, was reportedly recovered from Camp 5 Prisoner of War Cemetery, Pyoktong, North Korea. Definitive proof could not be found between X-14632 and Ryhter, and the remains were determined to be unidentifiable. They were then sent to Hawaii where they were buried as an Unknown in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii, known as the Punchbowl.
In Sept. 2019, DPAA personnel exhumed Unknown X-14632 from the Punchbowl and sent the remains to the DPAA laboratory, for analysis.
To identify Ryhter’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental and anthropological analysis, as well as chest radiograph comparison and circumstantial evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis.
Ryhter’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.
Ryhter will be buried in Bedford, Ohio, on a date to be determined.
For family and funeral information, contact the Army Casualty Office at (800) 892-2490.
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The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Air Forces Sgt. Jack H. Hohlfeld, 29, of Trempealeau, Wisconsin, who was captured and died as a prisoner of war during World War II, was accounted for May 29, 2024.
Hohlfeld was a member of Headquarters Squadron, 24th Pursuit Group, when Japanese forces invaded the Philippine Islands in December 1941. 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. Hohlfeld was among those reported captured when U.S. forces in Bataan surrendered to the Japanese. They were subjected to the 65-mile Bataan Death Hohlfeld 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, Hohlfeld died Dec. 26, 1942, and was buried along with other deceased prisoners in the local Cabanatuan Camp Cemetery in Common Grave 811.
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 of the sets of remains from Common Grave 811 were identified, while the remaining 3 were declared unidentifiable. The unidentified remains were buried at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial (MACM) as Unknowns.
In 2018, as part of the Cabanatuan Project, DPAA exhumed the remains associated with Common Grave 811 and sent them to the DPAA laboratory for analysis.
To identify Hohlfeld’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 (mtDNA) analysis.
Although interred as an Unknown in MACM, Hohlfeld’s grave was meticulously cared for over the past 70 years by the American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC). Today, Hohlfeld 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.
Hohlfeld will be buried in La Crosse, Wisconsin, on a date to be determined.
For family and funeral information, contact the Army Casualty Office at (800) 892-2490.
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The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Air Force Staff Sgt. Ralph H. Bode, 20, of Racine, Wisconsin, killed during World War II, was accounted for Dec. 26, 2023.
In late 1944, SSgt. Bode was assigned to the 700th Bombardment Squadron, 445th Bombardment Group, 2nd Air Division, 8th Air Force in the European Theater. On Sep 27, Bode, the tail gunner onboard a B-24H “Liberator”, was lost when his aircraft was shot down while on a bombing mission over Kassel, Germany. During the mission, the formation of Allied aircraft encountered heavy resistance from ground and air forces, which resulted in the rapid loss of 25 Liberators. Several surviving crewmembers from Bode’s aircraft reported seeing other crewmembers near escape hatches, but they did not see Bode escape the aircraft. After the crash, German forces captured 3 crewmembers as prisoners of war, but Bode was not among them. After a year without a sign of Bode, the War Department issued a finding of death on September 28, 1945.
In Sept 1951, the American Graves Registration Command (AGRC), the organization that searched for and recovered fallen American personnel in the European Theater, received information from local residents of Richelsdorf, Germany, about several bombers that had crashed in the woods just outside town. Investigators were able to locate remains of crashed aircraft and various bits of scattered clothing, and the osseus remains belonging to multiple servicemembers. These remains, labeled X-9070 Liege and X-9071 Liege, were believed to be those belonging to members of Bode’s downed aircraft. At the time, identification of these remains was not possible, and they were interred in the Luxembourg America Cemetery, Luxembourg, and the North African American Cemetery, Tunisia, respectively. The separate burials were done due to a lack of space in a single location.
In April 2018, DoD and American Battle Monuments Commission personnel exhumed X-9070, but it wasn’t until May 2022 that X-9071 was able to be exhumed. Both sets were transferred to the DPAA Laboratory for analysis and identification.
To identify Bode’s remains, scientists from DPAA used anthropological analysis. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis.
Bode’s name is recorded on the Walls of the Missing at Luxembourg American Cemetery, Hamm, Luxembourg, along with others still missing from WWII. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Bode will be buried on September 27, 2024, in Racine, Wisconsin.
For family and funeral information, contact the Army Casualty Office at (800) 892-2490.
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The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Air Forces 2nd Lt. Alfred J. Hamwey, 24, of Jacksonville, Florida, killed during World War II, was accounted for on May 20, 2024.
In January 1945, Hamwey was assigned to 360th Service Group, Combat Replacement Training Center, Far East Air Force, and deployed in present day Papua New Guinea. As part of an attempt to neutralize the Japanese threat near Wewak, Territory of New Guinea, Hamwey’s unit attacked enemy defensive positions on nearby Cape Wom. Hamwey was reported as missing in action on Jan. 20, when friendly forces lost contact with the A-20G Havoc bomber he was piloting.
Following the war, the American Graves Registration Service (AGRS), the military unit responsible for investigating and recovering missing American personnel in the Pacific Theater, conducted exhaustive searches of battle areas and crash sites in New Guinea, concluding their search in late 1948. In June 1949, a board of AGRS officials concluded they were unable to locate any remains of Hamwey and the other two crew members. They were designated as non-recoverable.
DPAA predecessor organizations began researching and recovering service members from Papua New Guinea in the early 1980s. In December 2011, an Australian Defence Force officer reported seeing an aircraft crash site in a swap near Cape Wom, East Sepik Province, Papua New Guinea. A local guide from the nearby Wom Village had discovered the site roughly six months prior and stated human remains had been seen in the crash. Between July 2015 and May 2016, DPAA personnel interviewed locals, collected crash materials and various life support items, and collected possible osseous remains. In late 2022, a DPAA Underwater Recovery Team conducted operations at the site, and recovered possible human remains, material evidence, and other life support equipment. The remains were sent to the DPAA Laboratory for review and analysis.
To identify Hamwey’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental and anthropological analysis, as well as material and circumstantial evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis.
Hamwey’s name is recorded on the Walls of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial, along with others still missing from WWII. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Hamwey will be buried on September 12, 2024, in Jacksonville, Florida.
For family and funeral information, contact the Army Casualty Office at (800) 892-2490.
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The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Air Force Sgt. David S. Price, 26, of Centralia, Washington, who was killed during the Vietnam War, was accounted for June 21, 2024.
In 1968, Price and 18 other men were assigned to Lima Site 85, a tactical air navigation radar site on a remote, 5,600-foot mountain peak known as Phou Pha Thi in Houaphan Province, Laos. In the early morning of March 11, the site was overrun by Vietnamese commandos, causing the Americans to seek safety on a narrow ledge of the steep mountain. A few hours later, under the protective cover of A-1 Skyraider aircraft, U.S. helicopters were able to rescue eight of the men. Price and 10 other Americans were killed in action and unable to be recovered.
In 1994, a joint U.S. – Lao People’s Democratic Republic (L.P.D.R.) recovery operation, led by DPAA’s predecessor Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), took place near the top of Phou Pha Thi with negative results. A second recovery operation, in 2003, resulted in the discovery of remains which were subsequently identified as one of the missing U.S. servicemen, Tech Sgt. Patrick L. Shannon. Since that time, JPAC evaluated the feasibility of conducting recoveries on Phou Pha Thi but logistics and safety concerns precluded further attempts.
From 1994 to 2009, in cooperation with the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (S.R.V.) and L.P.D.R., teams pursued multiple leads from dozens of witnesses interviewed, including those involved with the attack. In 2003 a joint team recovered remains during site investigation work along the western slopes of Phou Pha Thi. The remains were scientifically identified as one of the 11 missing Airmen from this incident. In 2005, a Laotian citizen provided U.S. officials an identification card belonging to another missing servicemember, and human remains purportedly found at the base of Phou Pha Thi.
In 2023, DPAA personnel and members from partner organizations discovered unexploded ordnance, incident-related materials, possible material evidence, and possible osseus remains from the research site. Believing a possible match to Price, the remains were transferred to the DPAA laboratory for analysis and identification.
To identify Price’s remains, scientists from DPAA used circumstantial evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis.
Today, Price is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii, and on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall in Washington, D.C., (Panel 44E, Line 19). A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Price will be buried in Centralia, Washington, on August 30, 2024.
For family and funeral information, contact the Air Force Casualty Office at (800) 531-5501.
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USS West Virginia Sailor Accounted for from WWII (Luker, R.)
Washington –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that Navy Fireman 3rd Class (F3c) Royle B. Luker, killed during World War II, was accounted for on May 29, 2024.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Luker 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 Luker.
https://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpg00adminhttps://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpgadmin2025-04-04 19:33:122025-04-04 19:33:14Fireman 3rd Class Royle B. Luker
USS West Virginia Sailor Accounted for from WWII (Boyer, F.)
Washington –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that Navy Fireman 1st Class (F1c) Fred H. Boyer, killed during World War II, was accounted for on June 11, 2024.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Boyer 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 Boyer.
https://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpg00adminhttps://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpgadmin2025-04-04 19:32:422025-04-04 19:32:43Fireman 1st Class Fred H. Boyer
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Corporal Robert A. Bartlett, 22, of Pierre, South Dakota, killed during World War II, was accounted for May 20, 2024.
In July 1944, Bartlett was assigned to Company A, 744th Tank Battalion, as a crew member of an M5A1 Stuart light tank. His unit was engaged in battle with German forces at Saint-Germain-d’Elle, France, on July 26 when his tank was struck by an enemy shoulder-fired rocket. Two crewmembers were able to escape the vehicle, but Bartlett and another Soldier were never seen or heard from again. Due to strong enemy artillery fire and intense combat, surviving crewmembers were unable to examine the tank afterwards. Bartlett was declared missing in action, but the Germans never reported him as a prisoner of war. In September 1950, with no evidence Bartlett survived the fighting, the Army Quartermaster Corps determined his remains were non-recoverable.
Beginning in 1946, the American Graves Registration Command (AGRC) was tasked with investigating and recovering missing American personnel in Europe. On July 30, 1944, AGRC personnel recovered two sets of remains from an M5A1 destroyed in the vicinity of Saint-Germain-d’Elle. Ultimately, they could not identify the remains, designated X-141 and X-142 St. Laurent, and they were interred in the Normandy American Cemetery, France.
While studying unresolved American losses in the Saint-Germain-d’Elle area, a DPAA historian determined that the M5A1 Stuart tank recovered from the area belonged to Company A, where Bartlett was assigned. This correlation led DPAA and American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) personnel to exhume the remains of X-141 and X-142 in April 2018, and sent them to the DPAA laboratory for analysis and identification.
To identify Bartlett’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 (mtDNA) and Y chromosome DNA (Y-STR) analysis.
Bartlett’s name is recorded on the Walls of the Missing at Normandy American Cemetery, an American Battle Monuments Commission site in Colleville-sur-Mer, France, along with the others still missing from World War II. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Bartlett will be buried in Blount, South Dakota, on August 10, 2024.
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.jpgadmin2025-04-04 19:32:072025-04-04 19:32:08Corporal Robert A. Bartlett
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that Army Pvt. 1st Class Luther E. Bagley, 22, of Fitzgerald, Georgia, killed during World War II, was accounted for on May 7, 2024.
In the spring and summer of 1944, Pfc. Bagley was a member of Company K, 3rd Battalion, reinforcing the 5307th Composite Unit (Provisional), also known as Merrill’s Marauders. On July 25, Bagley’s battalion was engaged with Japanese forces in the Battle of Myitkyina, in Burma. It was reported he was killed in action while attempting to secure an airstrip near the village of Radhapur. His remains were not accounted for during or after the war.
In 1947, American Graves Registration Service (AGRS) personnel recovered a set of unknown remains, designated X-524 Barrackpore, in the vicinity of Myitkyina. The remains were initially examined at Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, but investigators were unable to scientifically identify them. X-524 was interred in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific (NMCP), known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu.
In 2021, DPAA disinterred Unknown X-524 from the Punchbowl and transferred the remains to the DPAA laboratory for scientific analysis.
To identify Bagley’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental and anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial evidence. Additionally, the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis.
Bagley’s name is recorded on the Tablets of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial in Taguig City, Philippines, along with the others missing from WWII. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
DPAA is grateful to the Department of Veterans Affairs for their partnership in this mission.
Bagley will be buried in Fitzgerald, Georgia, on August 10, 2024.
For family and funeral information, call the Army Casualty Office at (800) 892-2490.
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Sgt. Henry H. Allen Jr.
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | July 30, 2024
Airman Accounted for from WWII (Allen, H.)
Washington –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Air Force Sgt. Henry H. Allen Jr., killed during World War II, was accounted for June 20, 2024.
In spring 1944, Allen was assigned to the 732nd Bombardment Squadron, 453rd Bombardment Group, 2nd Combat Bomb Wing, 2nd Air Division, 8th Air Force in the European Theater. On April 8, Allen, the top turret gunner onboard a B-24H “Liberator” Little Joe, was killed in action when his plane was shot down by enemy fighter aircraft fire while on a bombing mission to Brunswick, Germany. Airmen aboard other aircraft flying in formation with Little Joe did not report seeing any crewmembers exiting the aircraft before it crashed in the vicinity of Salzwedel. The crash site could not be located by Allied forces during the war, and the remains of all nine crewmembers, including Allen, were unaccounted for following the war.
Sgt. John P. Ryhter
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | July 26, 2024
Soldier Accounted for from Korean War (Ryhter, J.)
Washington –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Sgt. John P. Ryhter, 22, of Bedford, Ohio, killed during the Korean War, was accounted for Apr. 8, 2024.
In Dec. 1950, Ryhter was a member of Battery A, 82nd Anti-Aircraft Artillery Automatic Weapons Battalion, 2nd Infantry Division. He was reported missing in action after his unit engaged in intensive combat actions against the Chinese People’s Volunteer Army in the vicinity of Kunu-ri, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, during the Battle of Ch’ongch’on River. At the time the circumstances for Ryhter’s loss were not immediately known, and there was never any evidence that he was a prisoner of war. The Army issued a presumptive finding of death on Dec. 31, 1953.
Following the war, in 1954, the opposing nations reached an agreement to exchange war dead, the execution of which was known as Operation GLORY. One set of Unknown remains, designated X-14632 OP GLORY, was reportedly recovered from Camp 5 Prisoner of War Cemetery, Pyoktong, North Korea. Definitive proof could not be found between X-14632 and Ryhter, and the remains were determined to be unidentifiable. They were then sent to Hawaii where they were buried as an Unknown in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii, known as the Punchbowl.
In Sept. 2019, DPAA personnel exhumed Unknown X-14632 from the Punchbowl and sent the remains to the DPAA laboratory, for analysis.
To identify Ryhter’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental and anthropological analysis, as well as chest radiograph comparison and circumstantial evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis.
Ryhter’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.
Ryhter will be buried in Bedford, Ohio, on a date to be determined.
For family and funeral information, contact the Army Casualty Office at (800) 892-2490.
Sgt. Jack H. Hohlfeld
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | July 25, 2024
Airman Accounted for from WWII (Hohlfeld, J.)
Washington –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Air Forces Sgt. Jack H. Hohlfeld, 29, of Trempealeau, Wisconsin, who was captured and died as a prisoner of war during World War II, was accounted for May 29, 2024.
Hohlfeld was a member of Headquarters Squadron, 24th Pursuit Group, when Japanese forces invaded the Philippine Islands in December 1941. 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. Hohlfeld was among those reported captured when U.S. forces in Bataan surrendered to the Japanese. They were subjected to the 65-mile Bataan Death Hohlfeld 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, Hohlfeld died Dec. 26, 1942, and was buried along with other deceased prisoners in the local Cabanatuan Camp Cemetery in Common Grave 811.
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 of the sets of remains from Common Grave 811 were identified, while the remaining 3 were declared unidentifiable. The unidentified remains were buried at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial (MACM) as Unknowns.
In 2018, as part of the Cabanatuan Project, DPAA exhumed the remains associated with Common Grave 811 and sent them to the DPAA laboratory for analysis.
To identify Hohlfeld’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 (mtDNA) analysis.
Although interred as an Unknown in MACM, Hohlfeld’s grave was meticulously cared for over the past 70 years by the American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC). Today, Hohlfeld 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.
Hohlfeld will be buried in La Crosse, Wisconsin, on a date to be determined.
For family and funeral information, contact the Army Casualty Office at (800) 892-2490.
Staff Sgt. Ralph H. Bode
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | July 25, 2024
Airman Accounted for from WWII (Bode, R.)
Washington –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Air Force Staff Sgt. Ralph H. Bode, 20, of Racine, Wisconsin, killed during World War II, was accounted for Dec. 26, 2023.
In late 1944, SSgt. Bode was assigned to the 700th Bombardment Squadron, 445th Bombardment Group, 2nd Air Division, 8th Air Force in the European Theater. On Sep 27, Bode, the tail gunner onboard a B-24H “Liberator”, was lost when his aircraft was shot down while on a bombing mission over Kassel, Germany. During the mission, the formation of Allied aircraft encountered heavy resistance from ground and air forces, which resulted in the rapid loss of 25 Liberators. Several surviving crewmembers from Bode’s aircraft reported seeing other crewmembers near escape hatches, but they did not see Bode escape the aircraft. After the crash, German forces captured 3 crewmembers as prisoners of war, but Bode was not among them. After a year without a sign of Bode, the War Department issued a finding of death on September 28, 1945.
In Sept 1951, the American Graves Registration Command (AGRC), the organization that searched for and recovered fallen American personnel in the European Theater, received information from local residents of Richelsdorf, Germany, about several bombers that had crashed in the woods just outside town. Investigators were able to locate remains of crashed aircraft and various bits of scattered clothing, and the osseus remains belonging to multiple servicemembers. These remains, labeled X-9070 Liege and X-9071 Liege, were believed to be those belonging to members of Bode’s downed aircraft. At the time, identification of these remains was not possible, and they were interred in the Luxembourg America Cemetery, Luxembourg, and the North African American Cemetery, Tunisia, respectively. The separate burials were done due to a lack of space in a single location.
In April 2018, DoD and American Battle Monuments Commission personnel exhumed X-9070, but it wasn’t until May 2022 that X-9071 was able to be exhumed. Both sets were transferred to the DPAA Laboratory for analysis and identification.
To identify Bode’s remains, scientists from DPAA used anthropological analysis. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis.
Bode’s name is recorded on the Walls of the Missing at Luxembourg American Cemetery, Hamm, Luxembourg, along with others still missing from WWII. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Bode will be buried on September 27, 2024, in Racine, Wisconsin.
For family and funeral information, contact the Army Casualty Office at (800) 892-2490.
2nd Lt. Alfred J. Hamwey
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | July 25, 2024
Pilot Accounted for from WWII (Hamwey, A.)
Washington –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Air Forces 2nd Lt. Alfred J. Hamwey, 24, of Jacksonville, Florida, killed during World War II, was accounted for on May 20, 2024.
In January 1945, Hamwey was assigned to 360th Service Group, Combat Replacement Training Center, Far East Air Force, and deployed in present day Papua New Guinea. As part of an attempt to neutralize the Japanese threat near Wewak, Territory of New Guinea, Hamwey’s unit attacked enemy defensive positions on nearby Cape Wom. Hamwey was reported as missing in action on Jan. 20, when friendly forces lost contact with the A-20G Havoc bomber he was piloting.
Following the war, the American Graves Registration Service (AGRS), the military unit responsible for investigating and recovering missing American personnel in the Pacific Theater, conducted exhaustive searches of battle areas and crash sites in New Guinea, concluding their search in late 1948. In June 1949, a board of AGRS officials concluded they were unable to locate any remains of Hamwey and the other two crew members. They were designated as non-recoverable.
DPAA predecessor organizations began researching and recovering service members from Papua New Guinea in the early 1980s. In December 2011, an Australian Defence Force officer reported seeing an aircraft crash site in a swap near Cape Wom, East Sepik Province, Papua New Guinea. A local guide from the nearby Wom Village had discovered the site roughly six months prior and stated human remains had been seen in the crash. Between July 2015 and May 2016, DPAA personnel interviewed locals, collected crash materials and various life support items, and collected possible osseous remains. In late 2022, a DPAA Underwater Recovery Team conducted operations at the site, and recovered possible human remains, material evidence, and other life support equipment. The remains were sent to the DPAA Laboratory for review and analysis.
To identify Hamwey’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental and anthropological analysis, as well as material and circumstantial evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis.
Hamwey’s name is recorded on the Walls of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial, along with others still missing from WWII. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Hamwey will be buried on September 12, 2024, in Jacksonville, Florida.
For family and funeral information, contact the Army Casualty Office at (800) 892-2490.
Sgt. David S. Price
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | July 22, 2024
Airman Accounted from Vietnam War (Price, D.)
Washington –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Air Force Sgt. David S. Price, 26, of Centralia, Washington, who was killed during the Vietnam War, was accounted for June 21, 2024.
In 1968, Price and 18 other men were assigned to Lima Site 85, a tactical air navigation radar site on a remote, 5,600-foot mountain peak known as Phou Pha Thi in Houaphan Province, Laos. In the early morning of March 11, the site was overrun by Vietnamese commandos, causing the Americans to seek safety on a narrow ledge of the steep mountain. A few hours later, under the protective cover of A-1 Skyraider aircraft, U.S. helicopters were able to rescue eight of the men. Price and 10 other Americans were killed in action and unable to be recovered.
In 1994, a joint U.S. – Lao People’s Democratic Republic (L.P.D.R.) recovery operation, led by DPAA’s predecessor Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), took place near the top of Phou Pha Thi with negative results. A second recovery operation, in 2003, resulted in the discovery of remains which were subsequently identified as one of the missing U.S. servicemen, Tech Sgt. Patrick L. Shannon. Since that time, JPAC evaluated the feasibility of conducting recoveries on Phou Pha Thi but logistics and safety concerns precluded further attempts.
From 1994 to 2009, in cooperation with the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (S.R.V.) and L.P.D.R., teams pursued multiple leads from dozens of witnesses interviewed, including those involved with the attack. In 2003 a joint team recovered remains during site investigation work along the western slopes of Phou Pha Thi. The remains were scientifically identified as one of the 11 missing Airmen from this incident. In 2005, a Laotian citizen provided U.S. officials an identification card belonging to another missing servicemember, and human remains purportedly found at the base of Phou Pha Thi.
In 2023, DPAA personnel and members from partner organizations discovered unexploded ordnance, incident-related materials, possible material evidence, and possible osseus remains from the research site. Believing a possible match to Price, the remains were transferred to the DPAA laboratory for analysis and identification.
To identify Price’s remains, scientists from DPAA used circumstantial evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis.
Today, Price is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii, and on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall in Washington, D.C., (Panel 44E, Line 19). A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Price will be buried in Centralia, Washington, on August 30, 2024.
For family and funeral information, contact the Air Force Casualty Office at (800) 531-5501.
Fireman 3rd Class Royle B. Luker
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | July 18, 2024
USS West Virginia Sailor Accounted for from WWII (Luker, R.)
Washington –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that Navy Fireman 3rd Class (F3c) Royle B. Luker, killed during World War II, was accounted for on May 29, 2024.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Luker 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 Luker.
Fireman 1st Class Fred H. Boyer
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | July 18, 2024
USS West Virginia Sailor Accounted for from WWII (Boyer, F.)
Washington –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that Navy Fireman 1st Class (F1c) Fred H. Boyer, killed during World War II, was accounted for on June 11, 2024.
On Dec. 7, 1941, Boyer 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 Boyer.
Corporal Robert A. Bartlett
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | July 18, 2024
Tanker Accounted for from WWII (Bartlett, R.)
Washington –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Corporal Robert A. Bartlett, 22, of Pierre, South Dakota, killed during World War II, was accounted for May 20, 2024.
In July 1944, Bartlett was assigned to Company A, 744th Tank Battalion, as a crew member of an M5A1 Stuart light tank. His unit was engaged in battle with German forces at Saint-Germain-d’Elle, France, on July 26 when his tank was struck by an enemy shoulder-fired rocket. Two crewmembers were able to escape the vehicle, but Bartlett and another Soldier were never seen or heard from again. Due to strong enemy artillery fire and intense combat, surviving crewmembers were unable to examine the tank afterwards. Bartlett was declared missing in action, but the Germans never reported him as a prisoner of war. In September 1950, with no evidence Bartlett survived the fighting, the Army Quartermaster Corps determined his remains were non-recoverable.
Beginning in 1946, the American Graves Registration Command (AGRC) was tasked with investigating and recovering missing American personnel in Europe. On July 30, 1944, AGRC personnel recovered two sets of remains from an M5A1 destroyed in the vicinity of Saint-Germain-d’Elle. Ultimately, they could not identify the remains, designated X-141 and X-142 St. Laurent, and they were interred in the Normandy American Cemetery, France.
While studying unresolved American losses in the Saint-Germain-d’Elle area, a DPAA historian determined that the M5A1 Stuart tank recovered from the area belonged to Company A, where Bartlett was assigned. This correlation led DPAA and American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) personnel to exhume the remains of X-141 and X-142 in April 2018, and sent them to the DPAA laboratory for analysis and identification.
To identify Bartlett’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 (mtDNA) and Y chromosome DNA (Y-STR) analysis.
Bartlett’s name is recorded on the Walls of the Missing at Normandy American Cemetery, an American Battle Monuments Commission site in Colleville-sur-Mer, France, along with the others still missing from World War II. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
Bartlett will be buried in Blount, South Dakota, on August 10, 2024.
For family and funeral information, contact the Army Casualty Office at (800) 892-2490.
Pvt. 1st Class Luther E. Bagley
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | July 12, 2024
Soldier Accounted for from WWII (Bagley, L.)
Washington –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that Army Pvt. 1st Class Luther E. Bagley, 22, of Fitzgerald, Georgia, killed during World War II, was accounted for on May 7, 2024.
In the spring and summer of 1944, Pfc. Bagley was a member of Company K, 3rd Battalion, reinforcing the 5307th Composite Unit (Provisional), also known as Merrill’s Marauders. On July 25, Bagley’s battalion was engaged with Japanese forces in the Battle of Myitkyina, in Burma. It was reported he was killed in action while attempting to secure an airstrip near the village of Radhapur. His remains were not accounted for during or after the war.
In 1947, American Graves Registration Service (AGRS) personnel recovered a set of unknown remains, designated X-524 Barrackpore, in the vicinity of Myitkyina. The remains were initially examined at Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, but investigators were unable to scientifically identify them. X-524 was interred in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific (NMCP), known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu.
In 2021, DPAA disinterred Unknown X-524 from the Punchbowl and transferred the remains to the DPAA laboratory for scientific analysis.
To identify Bagley’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental and anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial evidence. Additionally, the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis.
Bagley’s name is recorded on the Tablets of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial in Taguig City, Philippines, along with the others missing from WWII. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.
DPAA is grateful to the Department of Veterans Affairs for their partnership in this mission.
Bagley will be buried in Fitzgerald, Georgia, on August 10, 2024.
For family and funeral information, call the Army Casualty Office at (800) 892-2490.