Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA)

Keeping the flame of hope burning; WWII lighter reunited with MIA Family

95-year-old Virginia Zoller holds a lighter that belonged to her brother Army Air Corps Staff Sgt. Michael Musashe. Musashe went missing after the aircraft he was on was shot down near the island of Falster after a bombing raid in April 1944. The lighter was recently reunited with the family after 81 years. One of Musashe’s last acts was to shoot down a twin-engine German Messerschmitt 210 aircraft that was attacking the B-17 Flying Fortress where he was the tail gunner. (Courtesy Photo)

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DPAA Met with Gold Star Families in Omaha, Nebraska for Vietnam War Annual Government Briefing

Families of unaccounted for American service members from the Vietnam War attend the Vietnam War Annual Government Briefing, Omaha, Nebraska, June 26, 2025. DPAA’s Vietnam War Annual Government Briefing included presentations of the U.S Government's efforts to achieve the fullest possible accounting of missing Americans from the Vietnam War. The program facilitated communication and collaboration among families, U.S. Government officials, non-government organizations, veterans, and third-party researchers to inform and support efforts in locating missing loved ones. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Ashleigh Maxwell)

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From Sea to Summit: A Summer Cruise in South Korea

Midshipman 2nd Class Jordan Trantham, a student at the U.S. Naval Academy, uses a pin pointer to search for a metal hit that could be potential material evidence of unaccounted-for U.S. personnel in South Korea, May 28, 2025. As part of their summer training, two Midshipmen from the Naval Academy assisted on a Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency mission. The experience offers a unique opportunity for future Navy officers to gain hands-on insight into joint-service operations, and the vital role DPAA plays in accounting for personnel from previous conflicts. (U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Keion Jackson)

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Sergeant Major Returns to DPAA as Senior Enlisted Advisor

U.S. Army Sgt. Maj. Lauren Flores, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency senior enlisted advisor, poses for a photo in her office at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, on June 6, 2025. Flores is the first woman to hold the position since the establishment of the modern-day accounting mission. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Dallin Wrye)

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Lt. Hendl delivering remarks at a podium

Space Force Guardian Escorts WWII Airman Uncle Home After 80 Years

2nd Lt. Katherine Hendl delivers remarks during the interment ceremony of her great-great-uncle, Staff Sgt. Loring E. Lord, at Woodlawn Cemetery in Everett, Massachusetts, June 7, 2025. Her family chose to highlight the 82,000+ Americans still listed as missing in action. (Courtesy photo)

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Marine's Vietnam Mission Rekindles Family Legacy

“No man left behind” is more than just a phrase for Marine Corps Gunnery Sgt. Kenneth FuQua. It represents a profound commitment: to uphold the nation's promise to provide the fullest possible accounting for U.S. missing personnel to their families and the nation.

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DPAA Hosts Vietnamese Delegation, Highlights Cooperation in Accounting for Missing Personnel

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Principal Deputy Director, Fern Sumpter Winbush, hosted a Vietnamese delegation, to include the Deputy Foreign Minister of Vietnam, H.E. Do Hung Viet, and Vietnamese Ambassador to the United States, H.E. Nguyen Quoc Dzung, representatives from Mission: POW-MIA, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, and the Vietnam Veterans of America in Washington D.C., May 21, 2025.

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A Chance Encounter Leads to Hope

Jennifer McDaniel, family member of a missing in action service member, reads the last letter her great uncle sent before his disappearance during a Family Member Update in Bellevue, Washington, May 3, 2025. McDaniel’s great uncle, Donald Raymond Vogel, enlisted as a private in the U.S. Army Air Forces during World War II, and went missing in April 1943.

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Keeping the flame of hope burning; WWII lighter reunited with MIA Family

DPAA Met with Gold Star Families in Omaha, Nebraska for Vietnam War Annual Government Briefing

From Sea to Summit: A Summer Cruise in South Korea

Sergeant Major Returns to DPAA as Senior Enlisted Advisor

Space Force Guardian Escorts WWII Airman Uncle Home After 80 Years

Marine's Vietnam Mission Rekindles Family Legacy

DPAA Hosts Vietnamese Delegation, Highlights Cooperation in Accounting for Missing Personnel

A Chance Encounter Leads to Hope

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STORIES & ANNOUNCEMENTS

Soldier Accounted For From World War II (Kramer, E.) The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Army Pfc. Edward J. Kramer, 23, of Detroit, Michigan, killed during World War II, was accounted Story

Soldier Accounted For From World War II (Bucey, W.) The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Army 2nd Lt. William B. Bucey, 29, of Cleveland, Ohio, who was captured and died as a prisoner Story

Soldier Accounted For From World War II (Smith, H.) The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Army Pvt. Henry J. Smith, 27, of Fulton, New York, who was captured and died as a prisoner of Story

Keeping the flame of hope burning; WWII lighter reunited with MIA Family To some, it is an artifact from the greatest generation’s darkest hour; to others, it is a two-ounce, two-inch piece of metal with a simple job, but to one family, it is the link to a hero who never came home. And thanks to the intervention of Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency historians and the kindness of a stranger, turned friend, a Zippo lighter carried by missing Army Air Corps Staff Sgt. Michael Musashe is back with his family after 80 years. Like so many mysteries in the digital age, it all started with a Facebook post. Story

Solider Accounted For From Korean War (Wheeler, W.) The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Army Pfc. William A. Wheeler, 18, of Hazel Park, Michigan, killed during the Korean War, was Story

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DPAA IN THE DOD NEWS

Defense Secretary Announces 100th Service Member Identified From Remains Turned Over by North Korea The 100th service member from a group of remains handed over by North Korea seven years ago has been successfully identified, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced from Hawaii. Story

Department Tells Gold Star Families: We'll Find Loved Ones, Bring Them Home Some 380 Gold Star families attended a family member update to learn how the agency is proceeding in efforts to repatriate the remains of service members who never returned home from the Vietnam War, the Korean War or World War II. Story

Returning heroes home: How DISA supports DPAA’s mission to bring the missing back to their families Every U.S. Warfighter who answers the nation’s call carries a solemn promise: they will never be Story

HRC’s Past Conflicts Repatriation Branch strives to connect Families with fallen Marge Hop Wong was in the third grade when her brother Staff Sgt. Yuen Hop, who became a waist Story

Face of Defense: Air Force Officer Contributes to DPAA Efforts People join the Air Force for many reasons, from the potential to travel abroad to the educational Story

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U.S. Servicemembers and Civilians Missing from Past Conflicts

STORIES & ANNOUNCEMENTS

DPAA IN THE DOD NEWS

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