Project Recover located three WWII aircraft in Chuuk, formerly Truk Lagoon, the Pacific. The aircraft were lost in Operation Hailstone.
Otis E. Ingram, WWII Gunner, Accounted For By DPAA
Navy Aviation Chief Ordnanceman Otis E. Ingram, a WWII gunner, killed in 1944, has been accounted for by the DPAA. ACOM Ingram was a turret gunner aboard a TBM-1c Avenger and a member of the U.S. Navy Torpedo Squadron Fifty One (VT-51). Project Recover located that Avenger in 2016 and turned its findings over to the DPAA. Ingram and his crewmates were on a mission to bomb a Japanese base in Malakal Harbor, Palau. His aircraft took off from the USS San Jacinto on July 27th, 1944, and was in the lead position of four Avengers. According to reports, the aircraft was last seen three to five miles ahead. It was believed to have been spotted on fire in Malakal …
Becoming Project Recover
We are pleased to announce that BentProp has changed its name to Project Recover. Our mission, vision, and values will remain exactly the same, and we will still send you regular updates on our search for MIAs.
NOAA Reports Project Recover Locates Stern of USS Abner Read, WWII Destroyer
n a mission funded by NOAA, Project Recover located the stern of USS Abner Read, a WWII destroyer, off the coast of Alaska. The stern of USS Abner Read was torn off the destroyer in an explosion in the early morning hours of August 18th, 1943.
Project Recover Discovers Stern of World War II U.S. Destroyer off Remote Alaskan Island in NOAA-supported Mission
Project Recover Discovers Stern of World War II U.S. Destroyer off Remote Alaskan Island in NOAA-supported Mission.
Walter E. Mintus, WWII Radioman, Accounted For By DPAA
Navy Aviation Radioman 3rd Class Walter E. Mintus, WWII radioman, was accounted for on June 25, 2018, the DPAA announced. His funeral is scheduled for November 10th, 2018 in his hometown.
The New York Times Reports Project Recover Locates B-24, Heaven Can Wait
The New York Times reports that Project Recover locates the B-24 ‘Heaven Can Wait’ in Hansa Bay, New Guinea, 74 years after it was shot down Japanese anti-aircraft fire. The B-24 ‘Heaven Can Wait’ was on a mission to disrupt Japanese shipping and supply chains when it was shot down. Lt. Thomas Kelly, Jr., was a bombardier aboard the B-24 and one of the 11-member crew who died that day. On Memorial Day, nearly a century later, Kelly’s cousin once removed began casual research into his family’s war heroes. The research project grew with each fact he discovered. It quickly grew into a family research project that spanned 5 years and included nearly 20 family members. Read the complete New …
Project Recover Locates WWII B-24 Bomber, Heaven Can Wait
May 22, 2018 – A B-24 D-1 bomber, Heaven Can Wait, associated with 11 American servicemen missing in action from World War II was recently found and documented in Hansa Bay off Papua, New Guinea by Project Recover—a collaborative team of marine scientists, archaeologists, and volunteers who have combined efforts to locate aircraft associated with MIAs from WWII. The crew of “Heaven Can Wait” was part of the 320th squadron of the “Jolly Rogers” 90th Bombardment Group and was on a mission to bomb Japanese anti-aircraft batteries around Hansa Bay on March 11, 1944, when their B-24 was shot down by enemy fire causing it to crash into the ocean. The crew had arrived in Papua New Guinea just four …
WWII B-25 Bombers located by Project Recover one of Top 10 Archaeological Discoveries of 2017
December 22, 2017 – WWII B-25 Bombers located by Project Recover off Papua New Guinea named one of the Top 10 Archaeological Discoveries of 2017 by HeritageDaily. In 2017, a Project Recover team traveled to Papua New Guinea to survey a large underwater area hoping to locate missing two WWII B-25 bombers. The Project Recover team includes volunteers and professionals from several fields including Archaeology, History, Oceanography, and Engineering. This interdisciplinary team was able to combine decades of expertise to narrow down a search area and then use advanced technology to scan the seafloor for missing aircraft – autonomous robots and human divers can then further investigate and document finds such as the two B-25 bombers which crashed into the sea …
Former WWII MIAs Rybarczyk and Sharninghouse Accounted for by DPAA
In March 2014, Project Recover located the underwater wreck of a TBM Avenger associated with missing servicemen from World War II, including Navy Reserve Aviation Radioman 2nd Class Albert P. Rybarczyk and Navy Reserve Aviation Ordnanceman 2nd Class Ora H. Sharninghouse.
