Staff Sgt. John H. Danneker

Press Release | Dec. 13, 2024

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

WASHINGTON  –  

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Air Forces Staff Sgt. John H. Danneker, 19, killed during World War II, was accounted for Dec. 10, 2024.

In June 1944, Danneker was assigned to the 565th Bombardment Squadron, 389th Bombardment Group, 2nd Combat Bomb Wing, 2nd Air Division, 8th Air Force, in the European Theater. On June 20, Danneker, the left waist gunner onboard a B-24J “Liberator” bomber, went missing in action when his plane crashed into the Baltic Sea off the coast of Denmark after colliding with another B-24 in the same formation. The pilot and co-pilot of Danneker’s aircraft were able to bail out and survived, but all evidence points to the rest of the crew being killed in the crash. The U.S. War Department issued a Finding of Death for Danneker on June 21, 1945.

In early 1948, the American Graves Registration Command (AGRC), the organization that searched for and recovered fallen American personnel in the European Theater, investigated the crash, but were unable to find any of the missing crewmen. Over the next couple of years, the AGRC also assessed unidentified remains that washed ashore in the area where Danneker’s aircraft crashed, but were not able to identify any of the crew. Danneker was declared non-recoverable on May 12, 1950.

This is an initial ID Announcement. The complete accounting of Danneker’s case will be published once the family receives their full briefing.

Sgt. Homer C. Nyberg

Press Release | Dec. 10, 2024

Airman Accounted For From World War II (Nyberg, H.)

WASHINGTON  –  

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Air Force Sgt. Homer C. Nyberg, 23, of Clay Center, Kansas, killed during World War II, was accounted for Sept. 30, 2024.

Nyberg’s family recently received their full briefing on his identification, therefore, additional details on his identification can be shared.

In late 1944, Nyberg was assigned to the 368th Bombardment Squadron, 306th Bombardment Group, 1st Bombardment Division, 8th Air Force in the European Theater. On December 29, Nyberg, a ball turret gunner onboard a B-17G “Flying Fortress”, became missing in action when his plane was hit by heavy anti-aircraft fire while on a bombing mission to Bingen, Germany. All crewmembers were able to bail out of the stricken aircraft, and only one airman was found dead by German forces near the crash site. Five men were captured and processed into the German prisoner of war (POW) camp system, ultimately surviving the war. Nyberg and two other crewmembers were unaccounted for, and there was no record of them being held as POWs.

In 1946, the American Graves Registration Command (AGRC), the organization that searched for and recovered fallen American personnel in the European Theater, began investigating several crash sites from downed aircraft of the Bingen air raid. Local German citizens were interviewed, and several accounts were recorded seeing American troops landing by parachutes. One airman was recovered by a local civilian who took him in and provided aid, but the airman was ultimately taken into custody by German military authorities. Nyberg and the third missing airman were not accounted for. Investigations continued for several years, but by April 1950 AGRC exhausted all efforts to recover these missing men and issued a recommendation they be declared non-recoverable.

In 2013, DPAA researchers working in collaboration with local Germans recovered documents from the state archive at Koblenz, which appeared to contain information on the loss of three captured airmen. These documents referenced a War Crimes case (12-1254) which indicated Nyberg was captured and killed by German SS troops near the town of Kamp-Bornhofen, and buried in the local cemetery there. Neither Nyberg, nor his two missing crewmates were ever officially registered as POWs, which explains why American investigators were unable to ascertain their fate during or after the war.

Between May 2021 and August 2022, DPAA teams began excavation of a suspected burial site in the Kamp-Bornhofen Cemetery, where the three airmen are believed to be buried. Under the supervision and direction of two Scientific Recovery Experts, the team recovered possible osseous remains and associated materials. These items were transferred to the DPAA Laboratory for analysis and identification.

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

Nyberg’s name is recorded on the Walls of the Missing at Lorraine American Cemetery, 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.

Nyberg will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia, on a date to be determined.

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

Pvt. 1st Class Arthur W. Crossland Jr.

Press Release | Dec. 6, 2024

Soldier Accounted For From World War II (Crossland, A.)

WASHINGTON  –  

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Pvt. 1st Class Arthur W. Crossland Jr, 19, of Columbia, South Carolina, killed during World War II, was accounted for Aug. 21, 2024.

Crossland’s family recently received their full briefing on his identification, therefore, additional details on his identification can be shared.

In March 1945, Crossland was assigned to Company L, 3rd Battalion, 242nd Infantry Regiment, 42nd Infantry Division in the European Theater during World War II. Shortly before midnight on New Year’s Eve 1944, German forces launched a major offensive operation in the Vosges Mountains in Alsace-Lorraine, France, known as Operation NORDWIND. The German attack surged through Allied defenses along the Franco-German border, and the ensuing battle enveloped two U.S. Corps along a 40-mile-wide front. In the following few weeks, Company L was assigned to move online near Althorn, France. Intense fighting ensued in the heavily wooded terrain filled with minefields, and mortars and machine gun fire halted Company L’s advance. Witnesses stated seeing Crossland trigger a mine roughly 200 yards in front of the main resistance line. He was killed instantly, but U.S. forces had to withdraw before they could recover his body.

Beginning in 1946, the American Graves Registration Command (AGRC), the organization that searched for and recovered fallen American personnel in the European Theater, began looking for missing American personnel in the Althorn area. At the time, they were unable to recover any remains which could be identified as Crossland. By late 1950, the Office of the Quartermaster General confirmed Crossland’s status as non-recoverable.

DPAA historians have been conducting in-depth research into Soldiers missing from combat around Althorn, and believe that Unknown X-535, recovered from Althron and interred at Normandy American Cemetery, could be associated with Crossland. Department of Defense and American Battle Monuments Commission workers exhumed X-535 in July 2022 and transferred the remains to the DPAA Laboratory for analysis.

To identify Crossland’s remains, scientists from DPAA used anthropological and other circumstantial evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and Y-chromosome DNA (Y-STR) analysis.

Crossland’s name is recorded on the Walls of the Missing at Epinal American Cemetery in Dinozé, France, along with others still missing from WWII. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.

Crossland will be buried March 14, 2025, in his hometown.

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

Sgt. Edward S. Kovaleski

Press Release | Dec. 5, 2024

Airman Accounted For From World War II (Kovaleski, E.)

WASHINGTON  –  

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Air Forces Sgt. Edward S. Kovaleski, 25, of Southbridge, Massachusetts, killed during World War II, was accounted for June 4, 2024.

Kovaleski’s family recently received their full briefing on his identification, therefore, additional details on his identification can be shared.

In spring 1945, Kovaleski was assigned to the 760th Bombardment Squadron, 460th Bombardment Group (Heavy), 15th Air Force, in the European and Mediterranean Theater of World War II. On April 26, Kovaleski, an engineer and ball turret gunner on board the B-24J Liberator Seldom Available, was killed when his plane crashed near Hüttenberg, Austria, while enroute to their target bombing location in northern Italy. Witnesses from other planes and surviving crewmembers reported the Seldom Available experienced mechanical failure, forcing a spiraling descent and eventual crash. Prior to the explosion, the pilot gave the order to evacuate the aircraft at roughly 25,000 feet. Eight crewmembers survived the incident, but Kovaleski was not accounted for. There was no witness of any deployed parachute following the crash, and it was believed he was still in the plane when it crashed. Kovaleski’s remains were not recovered, and he was subsequently declared missing in action.

In 2017, DPAA researchers investigated a suspected crash site near Sankt Johann am Pressen, Karnten, Austria, after an independent researcher provided a lead which pointed to a possible crashed U.S. aircraft. Between 2021 and 2022, the crash site and a suspected nearby burial location were excavated by a DPAA partner organization. Evidence recovered from the site, believed to be associated with Kovaleski, was then sent to the DPAA laboratory for examination and identification.

To identify Kovaleski’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), Y-chromosome DNA (Y-STR), and autosomal DNA (auSTR) analysis.

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

Kovaleski will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia, on a date to be determined.

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. DPAA would also like to thank Geoscope Services Limited, who excavated the site and recovered evidence that was transferred to the DPAA laboratory.

Seaman 2nd Class John C. Auld

Press Release | Dec. 5, 2024

USS Oklahoma Sailor Accounted For From World War II (Auld, J.)

WASHINGTON  –  

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Navy Seaman 2nd Class John C. Auld, 23, of Newcastle, England, killed during World War II, was accounted for on Oct. 15, 2018.

DPAA was only recently made aware of Auld’s family receiving their full briefing on his identification, therefore, additional details on his identification can be shared.

On Dec. 7, 1941, Auld 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 Auld.

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 on Oahu.

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 dentifications 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 Auld.

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

To identify Auld’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 Y-chromosome DNA (Y-STR) analysis.

Auld’s name is recorded in the Courts 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.

Auld will be buried on Dec. 6, 2024, in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

For family and funeral information, contact the US Navy Casualty office at (901) 874-2438.

Warrant Officer Albert R. Trudeau

Press Release | Dec. 4, 2024

Pilot Accounted For From Vietnam War (Trudeau, A.)

WASHINGTON  –  

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Warrant Officer Albert R. Trudeau, 22, of Teaneck, New Jersey, killed during the Vietnam War, was accounted for September 11, 2024.

Trudeau’s family recently received their full briefing on his identification, therefore, additional details on his identification can be shared.

In October 1971, Trudeau was assigned to the 68th Aviation Company, 52nd Aviation Battalion, 17th Aviation Group. On Oct. 26, Trudeau was serving as the pilot of a CH-47B “Chinook” helicopter when it went down over water in bad weather while flying from Tuy Hoa to Cam Ranh Bay in Vietnam. Remains of four of the 10 Soldiers on board were recovered during search and rescue operations following the crash, but Trudeau was not accounted for.

An unsuccessful recovery attempt was made in 1974 when divers from the Joint Casualty Resolution Center dove on what was believed to be the crash site. A number of investigation and recovery efforts took place between 1994 and 2021, with a June 2021 recovery mission finding possible osseous remains and material evidence, not linked to Trudeau.

From May 7 to July 9, 2024, a DPAA Underwater Recovery Team excavated an aircraft wreck site which correlated to Trudeau’s crash site. The team excavated roughly 336 square meters of underwater surface area, which resulted in the recovery of possible osseous remains, possible life support equipment, and various other identification media. All evidence was collected and turned over to the DPAA laboratory for analysis and identification.

To identify Trudeau’s remains, scientists from DPAA used anthropological and dental analysis, as well as material and circumstantial evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis.

Trudeau’s name is recorded on the National Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., and the American Battle Monuments Commission’s Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, along with others who are unaccounted-for from the Vietnam War. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.

Trudeau will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia, on a date to be determined.

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

Cpl. Waymon Slaten

Press Release | Nov. 26, 2024

Soldier Accounted For From Korean War (Slaten, W.)

WASHINGTON  –  

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Cpl. Waymon Slaten, 18, of Arab, Alabama, killed during the Korean War, was accounted for Aug. 14, 2024.

Slaten’s family recently received their full briefing on his identification, therefore, additional details on his identification can be shared.

In September 1950, Slaten was a member of B Company, 1st Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division. He was reported missing in action on Sept. 1, 1950, after his unit engaged in combat actions with the enemy on Hill 209, west of Yongsan, South Korea. Due to intense fighting in the area, his body could not be recovered at that time. The exact circumstances of his death were unknown, and the U.S. Army issued a presumptive finding of death of December 31, 1953.

On Oct. 22, 1950, American Graves Registration Service recovered Unknown Remains X-256 from the ground surface at the base of Hill 209, approximately 11 miles west of Yongsan, where Slaten was reported missing. However, those remains could not be identified as Slaten at the time, and they were subsequently buried as an unknown in the United Nations Military Cemetery, Tanggok, South Korea. Later, in 1954, X-256 was reexamined and deemed still unidentifiable. The remains were repatriated to the United States and interred in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, known as the Punchbowl, in Honolulu.

In May 2021, during phase 3 of DPAA’s Korean War Disinterment Project, Unknown X-256 was disinterred and sent to the DPAA laboratory for analysis.

To identify Slaten’s remains, 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 (mtDNA) analysis.

Slaten’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.

Slaten will be buried in his hometown on Jan. 13, 2025.

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

Tech. Sgt. Sanford G. Roy

Press Release | Nov. 26, 2024

Airman Accounted For From World War II (Roy, S.)

WASHINGTON  –  

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Air Force Tech. Sgt. Sanford G. Roy, 31, of Chattanooga, Tennessee, killed during World War II, was accounted for June 20, 2024.

Roy’s family recently received their full briefing on his identification, therefore, additional details on his identification can be shared.

In spring 1944, Roy 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, Roy, a waist 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 Roy, were unaccounted for following the war.

Beginning in 1946, the American Graves Registration Command (AGRC), the organization that searched for and recovered fallen American personnel in the European Theater, began investigating the numerous bomber losses in the Salzwedel and Wistedt areas of Germany. German forces had maintained accurate documentation (Kampfflugzeug Unterlagen, or KU) of American aircraft shoot-downs, with several reports indicating B-24s crashing in the area. However, AGRC was unable to associate any KU reports with Little Joe and investigators were unable to locate any crash or burial sites associated with the loss.

In 2015, an independent research group, Missing Allied Air Crew Research Team (MAACRT), contacted DPAA historians with new information related to a possible crash site near Wistedt, Germany. Interviews with elderly local residents indicated there were two crash sites, but only one was recovered by American forces following the war. Investigators located the second crash site and were able to recover various pieces of wreckage. Possible osseous remains were also located and transferred to the DPAA laboratory for analysis and identification. At the time, no matches could be made with any Unknowns and further investigations were scheduled.

Between 2021 and 2023, DPAA investigators returned to the crash site and continued investigations, then excavations and recoveries. By the end of November 2023, all evidence, including possible osseous remains and possible life support equipment, had been recovered and returned to the DPAA laboratory.

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

Roy’s name is recorded on the Walls of the Missing at Netherlands American Cemetery, Margraten, Netherlands, along with others still missing from WWII. A rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate he has been accounted for.

Roy will be buried in his hometown on the 81st anniversary of his loss, April 8, 2025.

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

Cpl. Howard A. Troup

Press Release | Nov. 25, 2024

Soldier Accounted For From Korean War (Troup, H.)

WASHINGTON  –  

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Cpl. Howard A. Troup, 29, killed during the Korean War, was accounted for Nov. 20, 2024.

In the fall of 1950, Troup was a member of Company E, 2nd Battalion, 38th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division. He went missing in action during a battle in the vicinity of Hill 409, near Am-sin, South Korea, when enemy forces attacked and overran his company’s defensive positions on Sept. 1. A statement from a member of his unit said he was likely killed by a grenade during an all-out human-wave assault. The Army issued a presumptive finding of death in December 1953.

This is an initial ID Announcement. The complete accounting of Troup’s case will be published once the family receives their full briefing.

1st Lt. George F. Wilson Jr.

Press Release | Nov. 22, 2024

Pilot Accounted For From World War II (Wilson, G.)

WASHINGTON  –  

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Air Forces 1st Lt. George F. Wilson, Jr., 22, killed during World War II, was accounted for Nov. 21, 2024.

In July 1944, Wilson was assigned to the 601st Bombardment Squadron, 389th Bombardment Group, 8th Air Force, in the European Theater. On July 8, Wilson, the pilot of a B-17G “Flying Fortress” bomber, was killed when his aircraft crashed near Monchy-Cayeux, France, after being hit by antiaircraft fire. Surviving crew members reported Wilson had been hit by flak and was still on board when the aircraft crashed.

Beginning in 1946, the American Graves Registration Command (AGRC) searched for and recovered fallen American personnel in the European Theater. They received information from several of Wilson’s crew members detailing the crash, but there is no evidence the crash site was ever visited. No recovered Unknowns were ever associated with Wilson, and he was declared non-recoverable in 1951.

This is an initial ID Announcement. The complete accounting of Wilson’s case will be published once the family receives their full briefing.