SEASIDE, Calif. (KERO) — A World War II soldier that was declared non-recoverable in 1949 has been accounted for. His aircraft was struck by enemy anti-aircraft fire and crashed into the water near Malakal.
In the fall of 1944 Wilbur A. Mitts was the aviation radioman assigned to the Navy Torpedo Squadron 20.
On September 10, 1944, Mitts and two other crew members took off from the U.S.S. Enterprise on a mission to conduct air strikes against enemy targets in the Malakal naval district, in the Palau Islands. Their aircraft was struck by enemy anti-aircraft fire and crashed into the water near Malakal.
Project Recover and the POW/MIA Accounting Agency conducted six investigations of the site and in May of 2019 with the help of exploration ships Discovery Research remains and material evidence were recovered.
Mitts was identified using dental analysis and mitochondrial DNA analysis.
Mitts will be buried in Seaside, California on September 11, 2023.
