Press Release | Oct. 5, 2021

Airman Accounted For From World War II (Wood, J.)

WASHINGTON  –   The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Air Forces 1st Lt. Jack K. Wood, 24, of Wichita Falls, Texas, killed during World War II, was accounted for June 4, 2021.

In the summer of 1943, Wood was assigned to the 344th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy), 98th Bombardment Group (Heavy), 9th Air Force. On Aug. 1, 1943, the B-24 Liberator aircraft on which Wood was serving as a navigator crashed as a result of enemy anti-aircraft fire during Operation TIDAL WAVE, the largest bombing mission against the oil fields and refineries at Ploiesti, north of Bucharest, Romania. His remains were not identified following mission. Remains that could not be identified were buried as Unknowns in the Hero Section of the Civilian and Military Cemetery of Bolovan, Ploiesti, Prahova, Romania.

Following the war, the American Graves Registration Command (AGRC), the organization that searched for and recovered fallen American personnel, disinterred all American remains from the Bolovan Cemetery for identification. The AGRC was unable to identify more than 80 unknowns from Bolovan Cemetery, and those remains were permanently interred at Ardennes American Cemetery and Henri-Chapelle American Cemetery, both in Belgium.

In 2017, DPAA began exhuming unknowns believed to be associated with unaccounted for airmen from Operation TIDAL WAVE losses. These remains were sent to the DPAA Laboratory at Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska, for examination and identification.

To identify Wood’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental and anthropological analysis. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), Y chromosome DNA (Y-STR), and autosomal DNA (auSTR) analysis.

Wood’s name is recorded on the Tablets of the Missing at the Florence American Cemetery, an American Battle Monuments Commission site in Impruneta, Italy, along with others still missing from WWII. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.

Wood will be buried Oct. 23, 2021, in Madill, Oklahoma.

For family and funeral information, contact the Army Casualty Office at (800) 892-2490.

DPAA is grateful to the American Battle Monuments Commission and to the U.S. Army Regional Mortuary-Europe/Africa for their partnership in this mission.

Press Release | Sept. 28, 2021

USS Oklahoma Sailor Accounted For From World War II (Connolly, K.)

WASHINGTON  –   The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that Navy Hospital Apprentice 1st Class Keefe R. Connolly, 19, of Markesan, Wisconsin, killed during World War II, was accounted for on Feb. 11, 2021.

On Dec. 7, 1941, Connolly was assigned to the battleship USS Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the ship was attacked by Japanese aircraft. The USS Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits, which caused it to quickly capsize. The attack on the ship resulted in the deaths of 429 crewmen, including Connolly.

From December 1941 to June 1944, Navy personnel recovered the remains of the deceased crew, which were subsequently interred in the Halawa and Nu’uanu Cemeteries.

In September 1947, tasked with recovering and identifying fallen U.S. personnel in the Pacific Theater, members of the American Graves Registration Service (AGRS) disinterred the remains of U.S. casualties from the two cemeteries and transferred them to the Central Identification Laboratory at Schofield Barracks. The laboratory staff was only able to confirm the identifications of 35 men from the USS Oklahoma at that time. The AGRS subsequently buried the unidentified remains in 46 plots at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific (NMCP), known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu. In October 1949, a military board classified those who could not be identified as non-recoverable, including Connolly.

Between June and November 2015, DPAA personnel exhumed the USS Oklahoma Unknowns from the Punchbowl for analysis.

To identify Connolly’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental and anthropological analysis. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and autosomal DNA (auSTR) analysis.

Connolly’s name is recorded on the Walls of the Missing at the Punchbowl, along with the others who are missing from WWII. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.

Connolly will be buried Nov. 8, 2021, in his hometown.

For family and funeral information, contact the Navy Service Casualty office at (800) 443-9298.

Press Release | Sept. 23, 2021

Soldier Accounted For From World War II (Wright, J.)

WASHINGTON  –   The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army 1st Lt. James E. Wright, 25, of Parkton, North Carolina, killed during World War II, was accounted for July 9, 2021.

In September 1944, Wright was assigned to Company F, 2nd Battalion, 11th Infantry Regiment, 5th Infantry Division. They were part of Lt. Gen. George S. Patton’s Third Army and had been fighting across France that summer before being stopped by fierce German opposition at the Moselle River near Dornot. On the morning of Sept. 8, Wright’s unit was part of a larger force ordered to cross the river and take up a position in the woods on the east side. They dug their defensive positions in a curved line at the edge of the forest they called Horseshoe Woods. The force held their position against a relentless German attack, taking heavy losses, until Sept. 10, when another crossing of the Moselle was made. Only then were they allowed to retreat. That night and into the morning of Sept. 11 most of the Soldiers were able to retreat across the river, though some officers stayed behind to search the woods for the wounded or missing before recrossing the river. Wright was among the Soldiers reported missing that night. His body was unable to be recovered because of the fighting and German presence on east side of the river.

The American Graves Registration Command (AGRC) was charged with recovering the remains of fallen service members in the European Theater following the war. Although some unknown remains were found in and around Horseshoe Woods, none were associated with Wright. AGRC continued operations along the banks of the Moselle until 1951. At that point, Wright was declared non-recoverable.

In 2012, a private researcher for the 7th Armored Division Association suggested one of the unknowns recovered from the Horseshoe Woods, known as X-46 Hamm and buried in Luxembourg American Cemetery, an American Battle Monuments Commission site in Hamm, Luxembourg, could be a match to a Soldier from Wright’s unit or the 7th Armored Division. After extensive research and record comparison by DPAA historians and analysts, X-46 was disinterred in May 2016 and sent to the DPAA Laboratory at Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska, for identification.

To identify Wright’s remains, scientists from DPAA used dental and anthropological analysis. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and autosomal DNA (auSTR) analysis.

Wright’s name is recorded on the Walls of the Missing at the Lorraine American Cemetery, an American Battle Monuments Commission site in St. Avold, France, along with others still missing from WWII. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.

Wright will be buried Oct. 12, 2021, in Lumber Bridge, North Carolina.

For family and funeral information, contact the Army Casualty Office at (800) 892-2490.

Press Release | Sept. 20, 2021

Soldier Accounted For From Korean War (Mazzulla, A.)

WASHINGTON  –   The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that Army 1st Lt. Anthony R. Mazzulla, 26, of the Bronx, New York, killed during the Korean War, was accounted for May 28, 2020.

In late 1950, Mazzulla was a member of Company B, 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division. He was reported missing in action on Dec. 2, 1950, after a fighting withdrawal near the Chosin Reservoir, North Korea. Following the battle, his remains could not be recovered.

On July 27, 2018, following the summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un in June 2018, North Korea turned over 55 boxes, purported to contain the remains of American service members killed during the Korean War. The 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 Mazzulla’s remains, scientists from DPAA used 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.

Mazzulla’s name is recorded on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, 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.

Mazzulla will be buried in Cranston, Rhode Island. The date has yet to be determined.

For family and funeral information, contact the Army Casualty Office at (800) 892-2490.