Ten More Are Home

DPAA has identified and accounted for the following formerly-missing US personnel.

From World War II

FM1c Billy J. Johnson, US Navy, assigned to the crew of the USS Oklahoma, was lost at Pearl Harbor, HI, on 7 December 1941. He was accounted for on 28 February 2019.

EM3c William A. Klasing, US Navy, assigned to the crew of the USS Oklahoma, was lost at Pearl Harbor, HI, on 7 December 1941. He was accounted for on 13 February 2019.

2nd. Lt. Walter B. Stone, US Army, assigned to 350th Fighter Squadron, 353rd Fighter Group, VIII U.S. Fighter Command, US Army Air Forces, was lost in France on 22 October 1943. He was accounted for on 21 February 2019.

TSgt. Alfred R. Sandini, US Army, assigned to 22nd Bombardment Squadron, 341st Bombardment Group, US Army Air Forces, was lost in French Indochina on 15 February 1944. He was accounted for on 13 February 2019.

From Korea

CPL Benjamin W. Scott, US Army, assigned to M Company, 3rd Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division, was lost in South Korea on 12 July 1950. He was accounted for on 25 February 2019.

CPT Rufus J. Hyman, US Army, assigned to Company A, 1st Battalion, 34th Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division, was lost in South Korea on 30 July 1950. He was accounted for on 21 February 2019.

SGT George R. Schipani, US Army, assigned to A Company, 3rd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division, was lost in North Korea on 2 November 1950. He was accounted for on 1 February 2019. (see note)

CPL Stephen P. Nemec, US Army, assigned to A Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division, was lost in North Korea on 2 November 1950. He was accounted for on 20 February 2019.

CPL James C. Rix, US Army, assigned to E Company, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division, was lost in North Korea on 30 November 1950. He was accounted for on 13 February 2019.

From Southeast Asia

JO3 Raul A. Guerra, US Navy Reserve, assigned to the crew of the USS Oriskany, was lost in Vietnam on 8 October 1967. He was accounted for on 21 February 2019.

Welcome back, elder brothers-in-arms. Our apologies that your return took so long.

You’re home now. Rest easy.

. . .

Over 72,000 US personnel remain unaccounted for from World War II; over 7,600 US personnel remain unaccounted for from the Korean War; over 1,500 remain unaccounted for in Southeast Asia (SEA); 126 remain unaccounted for from the Cold War; 5 remain unaccounted for from the Gulf Wars; and 1 individual remains unaccounted for from Operation Eldorado Canyon. Comparison of DNA from recovered remains against DNA from some (but not all) blood relatives can assist in making a positive ID for unidentified remains that have already been recovered, or which may be recovered in the future.

On their web site’s Contact Us page DPAA now has FAQs. One of those FAQs describes who can and cannot submit DNA samples useful in identifying recovered remains. The chart giving the answer can be viewed here. The text associated with the chart is short and is found in one of the FAQs.

If your family lost someone in one of these conflicts and you qualify to submit a DNA sample, please arrange to submit one. By doing that you just might help identify the remains of a US service member who’s been repatriated but not yet been identified – as well as a relative of yours, however distant. Or you may help to identify remains to be recovered in the future.

Everybody deserves a proper burial. That’s especially true for those who gave their all while serving this nation.

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Author’s Note: Travel schedule precluded a “No Longer Missing” article last week. This article represents a 2-week update.

Additionally, it appears that SGT Schipani’s accounting was not announced promptly and was “slipstreamed” into DPAA’s “Recently Accounted For” web page sometime over the past 2 or 3 weeks.

Category: No Longer Missing