Two More Are Home

DPMO has announced the identification of two US MIAs – one from from World War II, and one from Southeast Asia.

SSG Ray E. Thompson, US Army Air Forces, formerly of Portland, OR, was buried on 10 April 2013, in Pendleton, OR. On May 7, 1944, Thompson was a member of the crew of a B-24D Liberator that departed Nadzab, New Guinea. Due to mechanical troubles, the B-24D was delayed in departing the airbase and was unable to join the formation after takeoff.  The aircraft, SSG Thompson, and the nine others aboard the plane were never seen again after takeoff. In 1946, the War Department declared all ten men presumed dead.  SSG Thompson’s remains were recovered in 2008 and definitively identified using modern forensic techniques.  SSG Thompson appears to have been a crew member on board 1LT John E. Terpning’s aircraft.

Maj. James E. Sizemore, US Air Force, formerly of San Diego, CA, was lost on July 8, 1969, near Xiangkhoang Province, Laos.  He was declared formally accounted for (remains repatriated and positively identified) on 9 April 2013.  Maj. Sizemore and his navigator, Maj. Howard V. Andre, Jr., were lost when their A-26A was downed by ground fire during an armed reconnaissance mission conducted as part of “secret war” operations in Laos (Operation Barrel Roll).  At the time of loss, they were assigned to the 609th Special Operations Squadron, Nakhon Phanom Air Base, Thailand.  Maj. Andre’s remains have yet to be repatriated and/or declared definitively identified.

Rest now in peace, my elder brothers-in-arms.  You’re finally home.

. . .

Over 73,600 US personnel remain unaccounted for from World War II; over 7,900 US personnel remain unaccounted for from the Korean War; and over 1,650 remain unaccounted for in Southeast Asia.  If you are a relative of one of the individuals listed here (World War II – critical need), listed here (Korea), or listed here (Southeast Asia) – please consider reading this link to see if you qualify to submit a mtDNA sample.

If you qualify to submit a mtDNA sample, please submit one.   By submitting a mtDNA sample, you may be able to help identify US remains that have been recovered and repatriated but not yet positively identified.

Everybody deserves a proper burial.  That’s especially true for those who gave their all in the service of this nation.

Category: No Longer Missing