Remains recovered of Southern California soldier missing from World War II
The remains of a soldier from Whittier who was killed in World War II in the crash of a B-24D Liberator in Papua New Guinea have been recovered and identified, the Department of Defense announced Thursday.
The remains of Staff Sgt. Ivan O. Kirkpatrick, 36, are among the remains of 11 U.S. service personnel located in the crash wreckage and identified.
The plane took off on Nov. 20, 1943, from Jackson Airfield in Port Moresby, New Guinea, on an over-water mission. After the plane failed to return, searchers were unsuccessful in finding any wreckage.
In 1984, the government of Papua New Guinea notified U.S. officials of a crash site in a deep ravine. Multiple teams from the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command have attempted to excavate the site. In 2004, villagers brought human remains to officials.
The remains of Kirkpatrick and nine other crew members will be buried as a group March 24 at Arlington National Cemetery. Tech. Sgt. Charles Bode, 23, of Baltimore will be buried separately Friday at the cemetery.
At the end of World War II, the remains of 79,000 Americans remained unrecovered. Today, more than 74,000 missing are still unaccounted for, officials said.
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EDITOR'S PICKS:
Welcome home sir, thank you for your service, your country appreciates you and loves you. God bless.
Posted by: u know | February 10, 2011 at 07:12 PM
20 years from finding the site to recovery?
Posted by: FMc | February 11, 2011 at 04:21 AM
Welcome home boys and thank you for your sacrifice. God Bless.
Posted by: Andrew Masset | February 11, 2011 at 06:22 AM
Welcome home boys and thank you for your sacrifice. God Bless.
Posted by: Andrew Masset | February 11, 2011 at 06:22 AM
It's been more than 7 years since my uncle's plane crash was located. It went missing in 1943 while flying over "The Hump" between China and Burma. His remains and those of four other Army Air Force crew members are still waiting to come home. We continue to push for a recovery mission to be authorized and scheduled. It's a difficult, time consuming process. www.UntilTheyComeHome.com.
Posted by: Lee | February 11, 2011 at 04:13 PM