MIA Update- October 25, 2019

[boardman]

MIA Update: The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced one new identification, and six burial updates for service members who have been missing and unaccounted-for from WWII and the Korean War. Returning home for burial with full military honors are:

-- Army Cpl. Lloyd B. Odom, 19, of Odessa, Mo., was a member of Company A, 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division, 31st Regimental Combat Team. He was reported missing in action on Dec. 2, 1950, in the vicinity of the Chosin Reservoir, North Korea, when his unit was attacked by enemy forces. Following the battle, his remains could not be recovered. Odom will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery. The date has yet to be determined. Read about Odom https://www.dpaa.mil/News-Stories/News-Releases/PressReleaseArticleView/Article/1963851/soldier-accounted-for-from-korean-war-odom-l/.

-- Army Cpl. Charles H. Grubb, 21. of War Eagle, W. Va., was a member of Company M, 3rd Battalion, 31st Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division. He was reported missing in action on Dec. 1, 1950, in the vicinity of the Chosin Reservoir, North Korea, when his unit was attacked by enemy forces. Following the battle, his remains could not be recovered. The date has yet to be determined. Read about Grubb https://www.dpaa.mil/News-Stories/News-Releases/PressReleaseArticleView/Article/1947308/soldier-accounted-for-from-korean-war-grubb-c/.

-- Army Air Forces Staff Sgt. Willard R. Best, 24, of Staunton, Ill., was a member of the 407th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy), 92d Bombardment Group (Heavy), 40th Combat Bombardment Wing, 1st Air Division, 8th Air Force. On Aug. 24, 1944, Best was the top turret gunner aboard a B-17G Flying Fortress aircraft, carrying nine crewmembers, which was struck by German anti-aircraft fire and crashed during a bombing raid over Merseburg, Germany. Best’s remains will be buried in his hometown in the spring of 2020. Read about Best https://www.dpaa.mil/News-Stories/News-Releases/PressReleaseArticleView/Article/1953770/airman-accounted-for-from-world-war-ii-best-w/.

-- Army Air Forces 2nd Lt. John F. McTigue, 22, of Astoria, N.Y., was a member of the 407th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy,) 92d Bombardment Group (Heavy,) 40th Combat Bombardment Wing, 1st Air Division, 8th Air Force. On Aug. 24, 1944, McTigue co-piloted a B-17G Flying Fortress aircraft, carrying nine crewmembers, which was struck by German anti-aircraft fire and crashed during a bombing raid over Merseburg, Germany. McTigue’s remains will be buried Nov. 18, 2019 in Woodside, NY. Read about McTigue https://www.dpaa.mil/News-Stories/News-Releases/PressReleaseArticleView/Article/1953790/airman-accounted-for-from-world-war-ii-mctigue-j/.

-- Marine Corps Reserve 2nd Lt. Ernest A. Matthews, Jr., 34, of Dallas, Texas, was assigned to Headquarters Company, Headquarters Battalion, Division Special Troops, 2nd Marine Division. On Nov. 20, 1943, Matthews participated in a landing against stiff Japanese resistance on the small island of Betio in the Tarawa Atoll of the Gilbert Islands. He was killed that day in an attempt to secure the island. Matthews remains will be buried Nov. 5, 2019, in San Antonio, Texas. Read about Matthews https://www.dpaa.mil/News-Stories/News-Releases/PressReleaseArticleView/Article/1996485/marine-accounted-for-from-world-war-ii-matthews-e/.

-- Army Pvt. Connie Cagle, 23, of Sweetwater, Tenn., was a member of Company K, 126th Infantry Regiment, 32nd Infantry Division, when his unit was engaged with enemy forces along the Soputa-Sanananda Track, near Buna, in the Australian Territory of Papua (present-day Papua New Guinea.) Cagle was killed in action on Nov. 22, 1942. Cagle will be buried in Grand Rapids, Mich. The date has yet to be determined. Read about Cagle .

-- Army Air Forces Sgt. R.L. Tyler, 22, of Denton County, Texas, was a member of Headquarters Squadron, 19th Bombardment Group, when taken prisoner after the fall of Bataan in the Philippines on April 9, 1942. He reportedly died July 18-19, 1942. Tyler will be buried at the Manila American Cemetery in the Philippines. The date has yet to be determined. Read about Tyler https://www.dpaa.mil/News-Stories/News-Releases/PressReleaseArticleView/Article/1958207/airman-accounted-for-from-world-war-ii-tyler-r/.