WASHINGTON –
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced today that U.S. Army Air Forces 2nd Lt. Robert J. Barrat, 20, of Woonsocket, Rhode Island, killed during World War II, was accounted for April 30, 2025.
Barrat's family recently received their full briefing on his identification, therefore, additional details on his identification can be shared.
In early 1945, Barrat piloted a B-17G “Flying Fortress” bomber assigned to 427th Bombardment Squadron, 303rd Bombardment Group, Eighth Air Force. On Feb. 9, witnesses report seeing his aircraft collided with another aircraft in formation during a bombing mission to Lutzkendorf, Germany. The aircraft was seen hitting the ground and exploding, killing eight of the nine crew members onboard.
Following the end of the war, the American Graves Registration Command was tasked with investigating and recovering missing American personnel in Europe. In 1947, an AGRC team recovered eight sets of remains from marked burials in the Eisenberg Civilian Cemetery. The remains were transferred to the Central Processing Point at Neuville-en-Condroz, Belgium for analysis where two sets of the sets were individually identified. The remaining six were administratively identified as the collective remains of Barrat and five of his crew members. These collective remains were buried in Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery in St. Louis, Missouri.
In October 1991, a German citizen located the crash site and recovered debris from the aircraft, two inscribed rings, and possible remains. All material evidence was turned over to the U.S. Army Memorial Affairs Activity Europe in Landstuhl, Germany and then to the Central Identification Laboratory in Hawaii, a DPAA predecessor organization. In 2024, the remains were reexamined for further analysis.
To identify Barrat’s remains, scientists from DPAA used anthropological analysis, as well as circumstantial evidence. Additionally, scientists from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System used mitochondrial DNA analysis.
Barrat will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Alexandria, Virginia, on May 27, 2026.
For family and funeral information, contact the Army Casualty Office at (800) 892-2490.
DPAA is grateful to the American Battle Monuments Commission for their partnership in this mission.
For additional information on the Defense 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.