WASHINGTON –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Army Air Forces 2nd Lt. Andrew J. Litz, 21, who was captured and died as a prisoner of war during World War II, was accounted for on Dec. 23, 2025.
In the spring of 1945, Litz was assigned to the 458th Bombardment Squadron, 330th Bombardment Group (Very Heavy). The B-29 "Superfortress" bomber on which Litz served was shot down during a combat mission to Tokyo on April 14. Litz survived the crash but was held as a prisoner of war. He perished in the Tokyo Military Prison during a fire on May 26, 1945.
This is an initial release. The complete accounting of Litz’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 their country, visit the DPAA website at www.dpaa.mil or on social media at www.facebook.com/dodpaa, https://www.linkedin.com/company/dodpaa, https://www.instagram.com/dodpaa/, or https://x.com/dodpaa.
Litz’s personnel profile can be viewed at https://dpaa-mil.sites.crmforce.mil/dpaaProfile?id=a0Jt000001nzbcVEAQ.