The Defense Department has identified remains of four airmen that died when their B-25 bomber crashed after it was attacked by Japanese fighters on Oct. 24, 1943, on a bombing run out of New Guinea. A Nov. 8 Pentagon news release lists the airmen as 1st Lt. Robert H. Miller of Providence, R.I.; 2nd Lt. Robert L. Hale of Newtonville, Mass.; SSgt. Joseph A. Berube of Fall River, Mass.; and SSgt. Glendon E. Harris of North Monmouth, Maine. Remains discovered in 1946 and 1947 could not be identified at the time and were buried in the Philippines. Excavation of a crash site in 1999-2000 discovered remains and those, along with ones recovered in 2004 from the Philippine cemetery subsequently were identified using DNA and other modern forensic tools.
The Pentagon has concluded a new agreement to buy laser-guidance kits that turn rockets into drone-killing weapons. BAE Systems and the Defense Department announced a framework deal of up to seven years for 25,000 Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System guidance kits annually for the U.S. military.