Returning Heroes –Airmen Missing In Action From WWII are Identified

Echo9er Blog is very happy to to post this “Good News!” story.

Omn April 16, 1944 the crew and passengers of a B-24J Liberator, returning to New Guinea after a bombing mission went missing over water after flying into poor weather. The military board investigating the downed aircraft determined that it had been lost overthe water and was unrecoverable.

Now, after 62 years, the family, friends, and comrades of US Army Air Forces Capt. Thomas C. Paschal, El Monte, Calif.; 1st Lt. Frank P. Giugliano, New York, N.Y.; 1st Lt. James P. Gullion, Paris, Texas; 2nd Lt. Leland A. Rehmet, San Antonio, Texas; 2nd Lt. John A. Widsteen, Palo Alto, Calif., Staff Sgt. Richard F. King, Moultrie, Ga.; Staff Sgt. William Lowery, Republic, Pa..; Staff Sgt. Elgin J. Luckenbach, Luckenbach, Texas.; Staff Sgt. Marion B. May, Amarillo, Texas.; Sgt. Marshall P. Borofsky, Chicago, Ill.; Sgt. Walter G. Harm, Philadelphia, Penn., can close this chapter of their lives and open a new one.

Welcome home to all of you. Rest in peace and may God bless each of you and your families with his comfort and joy.

Following is the DoD Release.

April 20, 2006
DoD Release # 338-06

Airmen Missing In Action From WWII are Identified

The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of eleven U.S. airmen, missing in action from World War II, have been identified and are being returned to their families for burial with full military honors.

They are Capt. Thomas C. Paschal, El Monte, Calif.; 1st Lt. Frank P. Giugliano, New York, N.Y.; 1st Lt. James P. Gullion, Paris, Texas; 2nd Lt. Leland A. Rehmet, San Antonio, Texas; 2nd Lt. John A. Widsteen, Palo Alto, Calif., Staff Sgt. Richard F. King, Moultrie, Ga.; Staff Sgt. William Lowery, Republic, Pa..; Staff Sgt. Elgin J. Luckenbach, Luckenbach, Texas.; Staff Sgt. Marion B. May, Amarillo, Texas.; Sgt. Marshall P. Borofsky, Chicago, Ill.; Sgt. Walter G. Harm, Philadelphia, Penn.; all U.S. Army Air Forces.

The group remains of the entire crew are to be buried today at Arlington National Cemetery near Washington, DC, as are the individual remains of each man with the exception of King, Giugliano and Widsteen, whose families have elected hometown burials.

On April 16, 1944, Paschal and Widsteen were piloting a B-24J Liberator with the other nine men aboard. The aircraft was returning to Nadzab, New Guinea after bombing enemy targets near Hollandia. The plane was last seen off the coast of the island flying into poor weather.

The loss was investigated following the war and a military board concluded that the aircraft had been lost over water and was unrecoverable.

In early 2001 a team of specialists from the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC) interviewed a native of Papua New Guinea who claimed to have found the aircraft crash and recovered identification media for May and Harm. The team surveyed the site in 2002 and found wreckage that matched Paschal’s aircraft tail number along with human remains. They also took custody of remains previously collected by the villager.

Later that year, two additional JPAC teams excavated the crash site and recovered additional human remains and crew-related artifacts. Identification tags were found for Luckenbach, May and Paschal. Other crew-related materials found were consistent with items used by the Army Air Forces around 1944.

Mitochondrial DNA obtained from dental and bone samples was one of the forensic tools used by JPAC scientists and Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory specialists to identify the airmen.

For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO website at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call (703) 699-1169.

5 Comments

1. You keep us well informed… I enjoy reading your post of good news…

   Comment by Shayna — April 21, 2006 @ 6:23 pm | Edit This

2. Carnival of Blue Stars #10

   The Carnival of Blue Stars gives us, the families, friends, supporters, veterans and current service members an opportunity to have a voice in the Blogsphere.

   Trackback by Blue Star Chronicles — April 22, 2006 @ 7:17 pm | Edit This

3. Thanks, Shayna.

   Comment by Echo9er — April 24, 2006 @ 8:48 pm | Edit This

4. My uncle, William Lowery, was among those buried. It is
   good to have him home. To those still waiting, please remember, there is always hope. Thank you for connecting us with your web site.

   Comment by Marie Phillips Alexander — April 26, 2006 @ 2:25 pm | Edit This

5. Marie.

   Thank you so much for reading Echo9er and leaving your comment.

   I feel a certain commitment to recognize all the heroes that have fallen. I am especially happy that your Uncle has been returned and that your family can lay him to rest in peace.

   God Bless you and yours. Please come back and visit often

   Respectfully,
   David R. Harper
   Sergeant Major, US Army (Retired)

   Comment by Echo9er — April 26, 2006 @ 8:02 pm | Edit This

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