VFW - 3-31-17 MIA Update (11-American's)

[Boats]

MIA Update (11-American's)
By VFW 3-31-17
RE: https://www.vfw.org/actioncorpsweekly


MIA Update: (Additional links on each are available on this link:
https://www.vfw.org/actioncorpsweekly


The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced the identification of remains of 11 Americans who had been missing in action from WWII, Korea, and Vietnam. Returning home for burial with full military honors are:

1. Mr. Peter Atkinson, 25, of Berkley Springs, West Virginia, will be buried April 8 in Martinsburg, West Virginia. Atkinson, a former U.S. Army Air Corps Reservist, was among a small group of American pilots training with the Flying Tigers at Kyedaw Airfield, outside of Toungoo, Burma, in 1941. In preparation for battling Japanese forces invading China, the pilots engaged their Curtiss P-40 single-seat aircraft in aggressive training and mock battles. On Oct. 25, 1941, Atkinson’s plane disintegrated while participating in one of these training flights. Interment services are pending. Read more here.

2. Navy Seaman 1st Class Murry R. Cargile, 21, of Robersonville, North Carolina, will be buried April 7 in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu. Cargile was assigned to the USS Oklahoma, which was moored off Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when Japanese aircraft attacked his ship on Dec. 7, 1941. Cargile was one of 429 crewmen to be killed in the attack. Read more here.

3. Navy Seaman 2nd Class Vernon N. Grow, 25, of Redding, California, will be buried April 7 in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu. Grow was assigned to the USS Oklahoma, which was moored off Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when Japanese aircraft attacked his ship on Dec. 7, 1941. Grow was one of 429 crewmen to be killed in the attack. Read more here.

4. Army Air Forces 1st Lt. Robert E. Moessner, 24, of Scranton, Pennsylvania, will be buried April 5 in Arlington National Cemetery, near Washington, D.C. On April 18, 1944, Moessner was serving as a bombardier on a B-24 departed Kwelin, China, on a sea sweep. After making two passes over a Japanese merchant ship and escorting destroyer, Moessner’s plane came under heavy fire and was then shot down over Hong Kong harbor by Japanese fighters. Survivors reported that Moessner went down with the aircraft. Read more here.

5. Army Sgt. Homer R. Abney, 24, of Dallas, will be buried April 7 in his hometown. Abney was a member of Company A, 1st Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division, when his unit was engaged in heavy fighting with Chinese forces on the road from Kunu-ri to Sunch’on, North Korea — later named “The Gauntlet.” After several days of fighting, his regiment declared Abney missing on Nov. 30, 1950. Read more here.

6. Army Cpl. James T. Mainhart, 19, of Butler, Pennsylvania, will be buried April 8 in his hometown. Mainhart served with Company I, 31st Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division, part of the 31st Regimental Combat Team deployed east of the Chosin Reservoir in North Korea. The RCT was attacked by an overwhelming number of Chinese forces in late November 1950. Mainhart was among 1,300 members of the RCT killed or captured in enemy territory. He was reported missing as of Nov. 30, 1950. Read more here.

7. Army Sgt. Donald D. Noehren, 23, of Harlan, Iowa, will be buried April 3 in Arlington National Cemetery, near Washington, D.C. Noehren was a member of Headquarters and Headquarters Service Company, 2nd Engineer Combat Battalion, 2nd Infantry Division. While conducting a delaying action against Chinese forces south from the Ch’ongch’on River to Kunu-ri, North Korea, his unit encountered heavy fire and continuous enemy mortars. Noehren was captured during the withdrawal and was declared missing in action as of Nov. 30, 1950. Read more here.

8. Air Force Capt. Robert R. Barnett, 32, of Gladewater, Texas, will be buried April 7 in Austin, Texas. Barnett was a B-57B pilot with the 8th Bomb Squadron. While on a strike mission over Laos, Barnett’s aircraft reportedly crashed with no parachutes seen. The hostile threat in the area prevented a search and rescue mission and Barnett was declared killed in action on April 7, 1966. Read more here.

9. Navy Seaman 1st Class Monroe Temple was assigned to the USS Oklahoma, which was moored off Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when Japanese aircraft attacked his ship on Dec. 7, 1941. Temple was one of 429 crewmen to be killed in the attack. Read more here.

10. Marine Corps Reserve Capt. James W. Boyden was a member of the Marine Torpedo Bombing Squadron 233, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, Fleet Marine Force. On Feb. 14, 1944, Boyden piloted his Grumann torpedo bomber on an experimental mission to destroy enemy shipping in Simpson Harbor, New Britain. As part of the last wave of bombers, Boyden’s aircraft encountered intense anti-aircraft fire and was one of six bombers to fail to return from the mission. Read more here.

11. Army Cpl. William R. Sadewasser served with Headquarters Battery, 57th Field Artillery Battalion, 7th Infantry Division, as part of the 31st Regimental Combat Team deployed east of the Chosin Reservoir in North Korea. The RCT was attacked by an overwhelming number of Chinese forces in late November 1950. Sadewasser was among the more than 1,000 members of the RCT killed or captured in enemy territory. He was reported missing as of Nov. 28, 1950. Read more here.

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