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 Air Force achieved its goal of recruiting 32,750 Active-Duty enlisted Airmen for 2026 five months ahead of schedule, military officials said this week—its biggest recruiting year in more than two decades.