Robert's remains were found and recovered in the early 1980's. He was interred in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, Honolulu, Hawaii.

" Click Here " for that record.

A "Rosette" was placed in front of his name here at Manila to signify that his remains were recovered.

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Robert served as a Second Lieutenant & Pilot on B-24D "Weezie" #42-41081, CRTC (Combat Replacement Training Center), 5th Air Force, U.S. Army Air Force during World War II.

His normal assignment was with the 19th Bomber Squadron, 22nd Bomber Group, Heavy, U.S. Army Air Force.

B-24D "Weezie" #42-41081 was originally part of the 320th Bomber Squadron, 90th Bomber Group but was transferred to the CRTC (Combat Replacement Training Center) at Nadzab No. 4 Airfield known as Newton Field in Morobe Province, Papua New Guinea.

B-24D "Weezie" #42-41081 took off from 7 Mile Drome (Jackson) near Port Moresby on a courier flight bound for Nadzab Airfield. Aboard were three crew members and nineteen passengers. Over the Owen Stanley Mountains, this B-24 crashed into Mount Thumb, killing everyone aboard on impact. It has not been determined why they crashed.

Robert was declared "Missing In Action" as a result of this crash.

His status was later changed to "Killed In The Line Of Duty" when his remains were recovered.

Service # O-679012

Robert resided in Polk County, Iowa prior to the war.

He enlisted as a Private in the Army Air Corps on May 2, 1942 in Des Moines, Iowa. He was noted, at the time of his enlistment, as being employed as a Driver and also as Married.

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Servicemen who perished on B-24D #42-41081:

Allred, Robert E ~ 2nd Lt, Pilot, IA
Atkins, Harold T ~ 1st Sgt, Passenger, MT
Barnard, Charles R ~ Capt, Passenger, OH
Butler, Clint P ~ Sgt, Passenger, AR
Carpenter, Thomas J, Jr ~ S/Sgt, Passenger, AL
Frazier, Weldon W ~ 1st Sgt, Passenger, TX
Geis, Raymond J, Jr ~ 2nd Lt, Co-Pilot, IL
Ginter, Frank ~ S/Sgt, Passenger, NY
Gross, Stanley G ~ 2nd Lt, Passenger, IL
Holm, Keith T ~ 2nd Lt, Navigator, NE
Kachorek, Joseph E ~ T/4, Passenger, WI
Landrum, Harvey E, Jr ~ 2nd Lt, Passenger, TX
Lawrence, Stanley C ~ Sgt, Passenger, WI
Loop, Carlin E ~ Pfc, Passenger, KS
Mettam, Joseph B ~ Cpl, Passenger, CA
Samples, Charles, Jr ~ Sgt, Passenger, WV
Shrake, William M ~ S/Sgt, Passenger, IN
Staseowski, John J ~ S/Sgt, Passenger, MA
Steiner, Charles R ~ 2nd Lt, Passenger, OH
Thompson, Robert C ~ S/Sgt, Passenger, AL
Walker, Melvin F ~ 2nd Lt, Passenger, WI
Young, Emory C ~ 2nd Lt, Passenger, IL

Bio & Listing by:
Russell S. "Russ" Pickett

Special thanks to:
Janice Hollandsworth for noticing that his remains were recovered!

( Information from multiple sources, including Military & Private, were used to compile his biography and the crew listing. )

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