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Long-lost son welcomes MIA father home after nearly 80 years
For most families, the news that their missing loved one from a past war has been identified comes in the form of a long-awaited phone call. However, for James Seiferheld Sr., the long-lost son of U.S. Army Air Forces Sgt. Frank Seiferheld, a Defense POW/MIA Account Agency article on the local news was the missing piece that connected him to the puzzle of his recently identified father.
In January 1945, Seiferheld was a radio operator on a B-17 “Flying Fortress,” assigned to the 348th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy), 99th Bombardment Group (Heavy), 15th Air Force in the Mediterranean and European Theater of Operations of World War II. On a bombing raid of an oil depot near Regensburg, Germany on January 20, the aircraft experienced engine trouble after departing Italy. According to records of the mission, the aircraft’s pilot radioed that they were returning to the Tortorella Airfield. The last sighting of Seiferheld’s aircraft was west of Udine, Italy. Seiferheld and the crew were never heard from again.
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Seiferheld
SEA2 John George Bock Jr. honored at the Punchbowl
U.S. Navy Rear Adm. Peter Muschinske, right, deputy chief of chaplains for reserve matters, hands a flag to Jack Hudkins, a nephew of Seaman 2nd Class John George Bock Jr., during Bock’s interment ceremony at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, Honolulu, Hawaii, Oct. 9, 2024.
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency and other attendees paid their respects and honored the life of Bock, who was assigned to the Nevada-class battleship USS Oklahoma (BB-37) when the ship was attacked by Japanese aircraft during World War II. Oklahoma sustained multiple torpedo hits, which caused it to quickly capsize.
Bock was accounted for on May 19, 2021.
U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Annaliss Candelaria
DPAA Vietnam Wartime Accounting Initiative Round Table
DPAA Director Kelly McKeague poses for a photo with gold star daughters, during a Vietnam Wartime Accounting Initiative round table conference at the the United States Institute of Peace, Washington D.C., Oct. 10, 2024.
Representatives at the round table discussed topics regarding continued joint field operations throughout Vietnam for the upcoming year, policy and operational initiatives, and efforts to increase mission effectiveness and efficiency to account for U.S. personnel who are still missing.
U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Ashleigh Maxwell
Vietnam War Hero Returns Home
The family and friends of U.S. Marine Corps Capt. Ronald W. Forrester attend his funeral at Arlington National Cemetery, Washington D.C., Oct. 7, 2024.
Forrester was a bombardier navigator aboard an A-6A Intruder during a nighttime combat mission over the northern part of the Democratic Republic of (North) Vietnam. After entering the target area, Forrester’s aircraft ceased radio communications and never returned to base.
Forrester was accounted for on Dec. 4, 2023 and returned to his family for burial with full military honors. The yellow roses, given by friends of the deceased, are a symbol of friendship and appreciation.
U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Ashleigh Maxwell
Missing And Not Forgotten Ep. 5 - DNA's Role in POW/MIA Identification
In this episode of “Missing And Not Forgotten,” we talk with Dr. Tim McMahon, the director of Dept. of Defense DNA Operations, about how DPAA partners with the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System’s DNA Identification Laboratory to use DNA as one of the most important lines of evidence with which we make identifications of the missing.
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Welcome Ceremony in PNG Village
Villagers and DPAA members came together after a certificate of appreciation presentation in Papua New Guinea, Sept. 17, 2024.
The DPAA investigation team frequently operated in remote areas, adapting to the diverse customs of Papua New Guinea's many cultural groups.
U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Austin Boucher
Long-lost son welcomes MIA father home after nearly 80 years
SEA2 John George Bock Jr. honored at the Punchbowl
DPAA Vietnam Wartime Accounting Initiative Round Table
Vietnam War Hero Returns Home
Missing And Not Forgotten Ep. 5 - DNA's Role in POW/MIA Identification
Welcome Ceremony in PNG Village
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U.S. Servicemembers and Civilians Missing from Past Conflicts
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DPAA IN THE NEWS
Digging for answers: Ellsworth officer contributes to DPAA efforts
People join the Air Force for many reasons, from the potential to travel abroad to the educational
Story
Missing Vet Found After 51 Years Laid to Rest by Family Who Never Gave Up
Under a clear-blue autumn sky, a 21-gun salute reverberated through Arlington National Cemetery's
Story
Hundreds of formerly missing Vietnam War service members honored at Honolulu Memorial
Gold Star families honored loved ones in the largest event of its kind on POW/MIA Recognition
Story
Hoffman Estates native uses archaeology training in search for Americans missing in combat worldwide
Friday is National POW/MIA Recognition Day, but bringing missing Americans home is a year-round
Story
Defense agency accounts for 700th missing service member from Korean War
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced last week that it has identified the 700th service
Story
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STORIES & RELEASES
Soldier Accounted for from WWII (Larson, G.)
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Pvt. 1st Class Gordon N. Larson, who was captured and died as a prisoner of war
Story
A Search for Answers: DPAA Begins Disinterment of West Loch Disaster Unknowns
Members of the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) worked alongside caretakers of the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific (NMCP) to disinter the first eight caskets of unknown service members associated with the West Loch Disaster at the NMCP, Oct. 7, 2024. The attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, is well known, but few know about Pearl Harbor’s second tragedy and one of the greatest non-combat tragedies in U.S. history: the West Loch Disaster.
Story
Soldier Accounted for from WWII (Moss, T.)
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Tech Sgt. Thomas O. Moss, 31, of Brim, Virginia, killed during World War II, was
Story
Soldier Accounted for from Korean War (Miller, J.)
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Cpl. John Brooks Miller, killed during the Korean War, was accounted for Sept. 4,
Story
Airman Accounted for from WWII (Bradner, W.)
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) announced today that U.S. Army Air Forces Tech. Sgt. William W. Bradner, who was captured and died as a prisoner of
Story
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