Two high ranking military members render a salute as the honor guard prepare the flags to present to family members of members of the WWII B-25 crew that was lost on December 5, 1942 near Papua, New Guinea at an interment at Arlington National Ceremony. DoD photo by U.S. Navy Petty Officer William Selby.

Members of the Army's Old Guard prepare flags to present to the families of members of a B-25 crew that was lost on December 5, 1942, near Papua, New Guinea, at an interment at Arlington National Ceremony. Photo by Petty Officer William Selby

By Ian Graham

Yesterday, I attended a World War II Interment Ceremony for seven Army Air Corps Airmen at Arlington National Cemetery. The airmen, who received final honors, were members of the B-25 “The Happy Legend.” The plane and crew were lost on December 5, 1942 near Papua, New Guinea.

While the service itself was moving, it brings to light the work being done by the Department of Defense to search for soldiers still listed as Missing in Action.

“We’re not looking for a name on a piece of paper, we’re looking for our fathers, uncles, and brothers,” said Army Lt. Col. Eric Wolf, chief of the Past Conflict Repatriations Branch of the Army’s Casualty and Mortuary Affairs Operations Center.

Wolf’s office oversees the Army’s effort to locate and identify the remains of every missing soldier. Forensic evidence, genealogy and old-fashioned detective work are all a part of the process, which sometimes begins in the unlikeliest of circumstances. Bones might be found in a forest in Germany or divers may come upon wreckage of a plane.

Sometimes a search is quick and remains can be easily identified because of artifacts like identification tags or dental remains that are easy to research and compare, but some cases have been in the works for more than 10 years.

Wolf’s office stays in contact with the families it works with as it investigates, even if it takes waiting for new technology to develop before conclusive results can be found. Once those results are found, he said, the length of the wait seems trivial at best.

Once they remains are identified and returned to the family, they can be buried with the honors given to any current servicemember.

The Army’s Past Conflict Repatriations Branch can be reached toll-free at (800) 892-2490. Wolf said his case workers would be more than happy (“Honored, in fact,” he said) to answer any questions or help find a missing family member.

View a photo essay from yesterday’s interment ceremony.

Members of “The Happy Legend” Crew:
1st Lt. Charles Maggart
1st Lt. Wilson Pinkstaff
2nd Lt. Frank Thompson
2nd Lt. William Stocking (group and individual interment)
Sgt. Aub Lee Atkins Jr.
Capt. Richard Grutza
Pfc. Antonio Calderon