The Pentagon says that DOD analysts have identified the remains of 10 airmen who were deemed missing in action from World War II. They were crewmen aboard a B-24 returning to New Guinea on April 16, 1944, following a bombing mission over Hollandia when bad weather forced their aircraft to alter course to another airstrip. It never made it. Wreckage was found in 2001 in Morobe Province of Papua New Guinea, and subsequent excavations recovered various remains. The 10 identified are 2nd Lt. George Archer (Oklahoma), 2nd Lt. Raymond Cooley (Texas), 2nd Lt. Donald Grady (Pennsylvania), 2nd Lt. Dudley Ives (Texas), SSgt. Joseph King (Michigan), SSgt. Thomas Knight (Illinois), SSgt. Norman Nell (Missouri), TSgt. Richard Sargent (Pa.), SSgt Blair Smith (Pa.), and TSgt. Steve Zayac (Ohio).
The U.S. supports “a stronger and more capable” European defense, Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III said during an Oct. 22 press conference in Brussels—but that defense should not duplicate the functions and capabilities of the NATO alliance.