Body Believed to Be WWII Airman Recovered

The Washington Times ^ | 10-20-05 | JULIANA BARBASSA

[JZelle]

FRESNO, Calif. (AP) -- An ice-encased body believed to be a World War II airman who crashed in 1942 was chipped out of a Sierra Nevada glacier and taken to a laboratory for identification, a deputy coroner said Thursday.

Blustery weather kept rangers at Kings Canyon National Park from reaching the frozen remains for two days after ice climbers reported last weekend they had seen a man's head, shoulder and arm protruding from the thick ice.

About 80 percent of the body was buried in the glacier on 13,710-foot Mount Mendel. The area can only be reached by hiking two or three days, or by helicopter when the weather allows.

Six park rangers and a military forensics expert started chipping away at the ice on Wednesday, freeing the body after about six hours, said ranger Alexandra Picavet.

[A.A. Cunningham]

In this flying classroom, a Beechcraft AT-7 advanced training plane, Air Corps student navigators of Kelly Field, Texas, learn one of the top jobs in air warfare---charting the course of America's giant bombers in flight. Besides pilot and navigator instructor, these twin-engined craft carry three students, each of whom spends 90 hours in day and night navigation flights over wide areas of the Southwest and the Gulf of Mexico. Note "blister" above cabin which has porthole in revolving turret to permit readings of sun and stars.

[SkyPilot]

I hope they are able to bring closure to the family and identify this body.

There were thousands of deaths and injuries during training before they even reached combat.

Flying is a serious and a dangerous business.

[SQUID]

Wouldn't he have doggie tags for ID?

[BenLurkin]

Welcome home airman.

[TXBubba]

It says he had on a parachute stenciled with "Army". But it didn't mention any dog tags. Would the dog tag have a name anyway? or just a number?

[stumpy]

Name, serial No, blood type, and religous preference.

[TXBubba]

Either he didn't have them or they didn't want to put his name out until family was notified.

[stumpy]

I think a prior thread they are pretty sure of his identity, as they recovered the other crew members back in 1943. But yeah, gotta notify surviving family members. Welcome home brother.

[SunkenCiv]

Just adding this to the GGG catalog, not sending a general distribution.

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