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ID Announcements

Press Release | March 13, 2026

Pilot Accounted For From World War II (Lancaster, M.)

WASHINGTON  –  

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Army Air Forces Capt. Marvin E. Lancaster, 24, killed during World War II, was accounted for Dec. 15, 2025.

Lancaster was assigned to the 64th Fighter Squadron, 57th Fighter Group. He was reported killed in action on Nov. 2, 1942, when German fighters attacked his P-40F Warhawk aircraft during a formation flight over Egypt during the Second Battle of El Amein. He crashed into a remote portion of the Western Desert while on a strafing mission, and his remains were not identified following the war.

This is an initial release. The complete accounting of Lancaster’s case will be published once his family receives a full briefing.

For additional information on the War Department’s mission to account for Americans who went missing while serving our country, visit the DPAA website at  www.dpaa.mil, find us on social media at www.facebook.com/dodpaa or https://www.linkedin.com/company/defense-pow-mia-accounting-agencywww.instagram.com/dodpaa/, or https://x.com/dodpaa.

Lancaster’s personnel profile can be viewed at: Capt. MARVIN E LANCASTER | Service Member Profile.