Ralph H. Bode from Wisconsin, Racine county.
Service era: World War II
Date of death: Wednesday, September 27, 1944
Death details: Finding of death
Cemetery: Luxembourg American Cemetery
Source: National Archives, American Battle Monuments Commission, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
Robert N. Hansen from Oregon, Multnomah county.
Service era: World War II
Date of death: Wednesday, September 27, 1944
Death details: Finding of death
Source: National Archives
Porter M. Pile from Texas, Cameron county.
Service era: World War II
Date of death: Wednesday, September 27, 1944
Death details: On November 28, 2022, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) identified the remains of Second Lieutenant Porter M. Pile, missing from World War II. Second Lieutenant Pile entered the U.S. Army Air Forces from Missouri and served in the 700th Bombardment Squadron, 445th Bombardment Group. On September 27, 1944, he was navigator on a B-24 liberator (serial number 42-95078) that took off from Tibenham, England as part of a bombing mission against enemy targets in Kassel, Germany. After successfully dropping its bombs, the aircraft was on its return flight to England when its formation was attacked by roughly 150 German fighter planes. During the ensuing air battle, the B-24 was badly damaged, and several crew members were wounded. A fire soon started near the bomb bay, and three crew members bailed out. These men survived but were taken prisoner by German forces and were eventually returned to U.S. custody following the war. Reportedly, one of the wounded crew members was pushed from the aircraft by another, but his parachute did not open, and he died as a result. The remaining five crew members are believed to have gone down with the plane or were lost while attempting to bail out, and they could not be located following the incident. 2LT Pile was last seen with an injured leg standing near one of the plane’s exits, but it is unknown if he bailed out. German records did not report him as a prisoner of war. Following the war, the crash site for this Liberator was discovered by the American Graves Registration Command (AGRC) outside Richelsdorf, Germany. An identification tag and human remains were discovered, but they could not be identified at the time and were interred as unknowns. In 2015 and 2016, three DPAA recovery teams performed excavation operations at the Liberator crash site. Remains recovered from these excavations and those recovered in 1951 were consolidated and accessioned for analysis at the DPAA Laboratory. The laboratory analyses and the totality of the circumstantial evidence available established the remains as those of 2LT Pile.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
James M. Triplett from Washington, King county.
Service era: World War II
Date of death: Wednesday, September 27, 1944
Death details: Technical Sergeant Triplett entered the U.S. Army Air Forces from Washington and served in the 700th Bombardment Squadron, 445th Bombardment Group. On September 27, 1944, he was the radio operator on a B-24 Liberator that departed Tibenham, England, for a bombing mission against enemy installations in Kassel, Germany. During the mission, this Liberator was shot down by enemy fighters and crashed near Hersfeld, Germany. Six members of the crew were lost in the crash, and the remains of five could not be recovered or identified at the time. In 1951, American Graves Registration (ARGC) investigators discovered the crash site of TSG Triplett’s Liberator and recovered two sets of human remains. These could not be identified with the technology available and were interred as unknowns. Later, DPAA historians determined that these remains were strong candidates for identification, and they were sent to the DPAA laboratory at Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska, for examination. The laboratory analysis and the totality of the circumstantial evidence available established an association between one set of these unknown remains and TSG Triplett.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency