Finding ‘Heaven Can Wait’; Family Shares MIA Research

Lauren TrecostaMIAs, Research 16 Comments

Kelly Family Shares MIA Research On Memorial Day 2013, Scott Althaus did what he thought every family should do on Memorial Day; he began searching WWII records for his family’s war heroes and MIAs. One of the men he wanted to research was his cousin once removed, 2nd Lt. Thomas Kelly, Jr., who had been Missing In Action (MIA) since 1944. Lt. Kelly served as a bombardier in an 11-member crew aboard a B-24 bomber called Heaven Can Wait. Their mission that day was to bomb anti-aircraft positions on Awar Point at the northwest corner of Hansa Bay. Kelly’s B-24 took fire, became engulfed in flames, and crashed into the water off Papua New Guinea. According to a 1992  letter …