The remains of seven airmen missing in action since World War II have been recovered and identified, the Defense Department announced July 2. They are scheduled for burial with full military honors on July 15 at Arlington National Cemetery. They are: Army Capt. Joseph M. Olbinski, Chicago; 1st Lt. Joseph J. Auld, Floral Park, N.Y.; 1st Lt. Robert M. Anderson, Millen, Ga.; TSgt. Clarence E. Frantz, Tyrone, Penn.; Pfc. Richard M. Dawson, Haynesville, Va.; Pvt. Robert L. Crane, Sacramento, Calif.; and Pvt. Fred G. Fagan, Piedmont, Ala. These men were aboard a C-47A transport that departed Dinjan, India, on May 23, 1944, on an airdrop mission to resupply allied forces near Myitkyina, Burma. The aircraft never returned. In 2003 and 2004, DOD officials excavated a crash site about 31 miles northwest of Myitkyina that led to the recovery of the remains. (DOD release)
A provision in the fiscal 2025 defense policy bill will require the Defense Department to include the military occupational specialty of service members who die by suicide in its annual report on suicide deaths, though it remains to be seen how much data the department will actually disclose.