William Waddoups Jacobsen Jr., age 31, from Provo, Utah, Utah county.
Service era: Iraq
Military history: A Company, 1St Battalion, 24Th Infantry, 25Th Infantry Division, Fort Lewis, Wa
Date of death: Tuesday, December 21, 2004
Death details: Hostile; Mosul, Iraq
Source: Department of Defense, Military Times
Larry Duwayne Johnson, age 18, from Provo, Utah, Utah county.
Parents: DeWayne and Ella Mae Humes Johnson
Spouse: Lynda Annita McClellan (married July 17, 1969
Children: Holly Anne and Judy Lee Johnson
Service era: Vietnam
Date of death: Wednesday, July 22, 1970
Death details: Killed in Vietnam
Source: National Archives
Mark Dee Vincent, age 21, from Provo, Utah, Utah county.
Parents: Myrle Vincent
Service era: Vietnam
Date of death: Friday, January 9, 1970
Source: National Archives, Fort Worth Star Telegram (1970)
Harold Ray Holmes, age 28, from Provo, Utah, Utah county.
Spouse: Married
Children: Harold Curtis (born a month after the plane went down).
Service era: Korea
Date of death: Tuesday, June 10, 1952
Death details: On the evening of June 10, 1952, a B-29 Superfortress (tail number 44-62183A, call sign “Saloon 47”) departed Kadena Air Base, Okinawa, Japan, with thirteen crew members on a night bombing operation targeting railroad bridges near Kwaksan, Korea. This Superfortress was part of a multiple-flight strike force that included twelve B-29s. As “Saloon 47” began its bomb run, it was illuminated by enemy searchlights and attacked by MiG-15 fighters. “Saloon 47” exploded and then fell to the ground in flames. Aerial searches failed to locate the aircraft or its crew, and circumstances surrounding their loss were unknown at the time. However, on August 30, 1953, during Operation Big Switch, one crew member from this loss was repatriated. He reported that the sudden explosion blew aboard the hit aircraft blew him outside midair and he lost consciousness but during his freefall, he regained consciousness, opened his parachute and landed in a rice paddy and was captured. Signs of the other twelve crew members were not reported or found following the incident. First Lieutenant Harold Ray Holmes entered the U.S. Air Force from Utah and was assigned to the 28th Bombardment Squadron, 19th Bombardment Group. He was the pilot of “Saloon 47” when it crashed. No returning POWs mentioned contact with 1st Lt Holmes, nor was he seen at any know holding point, interrogation center, hospital, or permanent POW camp, and he remains unaccounted-for. Today, First Lieutenant Holmes is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, Daily Herald (1953)
Lynn Hughes Osborn, age 21, from Provo, Utah, Utah county.
Service era: World War II
Date of death: Sunday, November 21, 1943
Death details: From November 20 through 23, 1943, the U.S. Marine Corps and U.S. Navy conducted a large-scale amphibious assault on the Japanese-held atoll of Tarawa as part of Operation Galvanic, the Allied capture of the Gilbert Islands. Located 2,500 miles southwest of Hawaii, Tarawa was a crucial stepping stone in the planned U.S. offensive across the central Pacific toward Japan. The Japanese garrison on Tarawa’s main island of Betio was well-entrenched with hundreds of bunkers and gun positions behind formidable beach obstacles. The first wave of Marines approaching the shore encountered lower-than-expected tides, forcing them to leave their landing craft on the reef and wade the hundreds of yards to the beach under intense enemy fire. The heaviest number of U.S. casualties were suffered during this phase of the landing. Eventually, rising tides allowed U.S. warships to maneuver closer to shore and support the troops with effective naval gunfire. More Marines landed on the second day, launching attacks inland from the beaches and seizing the Japanese airfield on the island. However, the enemy launched vicious counterattacks and two more days of intense fighting were needed to secure Betio. The last enemy strongpoints were taken on the morning of November 23. The fighting on Betio cost the Marines nearly 3,000 casualties but enabled U.S. forces to press further across the Pacific and yielded valuable tactical lessons that reduced U.S. losses in future amphibious landings. Sergeant Lynn Hughes Osborn entered the U.S. Marine Corps from Utah and served in Company A, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division. He was killed in action on November 21, 1943, during the Battle of Tarawa. His body was not recovered at the time of his loss, and he was not identified among the remains disinterred from Tarawa following the war. Today, Sergeant Osborn is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Source: National Archives, grave marker, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
John R. Peterson, age 22, from Provo, Utah, Utah county.
Service era: World War II
Date of death: Tuesday, February 23, 1943
Death details: Died at maritime training station in Santa Catalina, California
Source: Salt Lake Tribune (1943)
Elmer Little Hopkin, age 20, from Provo, Utah, Utah county.
Service era: World War II
Date of death: Saturday, January 23, 1943
Death details: Killed in action off Australia
Source: National Archives, Salt Lake Tribune (1943)