B-24 wreck in the Adriatic identified

Hi
I wondered how your sister's trip went. I feel like I have not heard back from anyone recently regarding the Hanson crew site and recovery. Any updates are appreciated!
Lydia

 

Hi
Does anyone know someone attending the annual conference for the 449th bomber group? Maybe there will be updates regarding the Hanson Crew. My Dad doesn't feel he would be able to make the trip; we would love for him to go. However, we have not heard back from anyone in a while. Any updates to share?

We are trying to convince him to record audio at least for the Library of Congress in their own Voices (Veterans) --I think that's the name of the project. He is 92!

Remembering those who served and those still serving or missing on this weekend in a special way
Lydia

 

JPAC has had a team in Italy doing a survey of both the Hanson and Kendall sites. We are waiting for an update from our Italian connection regarding the survey.

 

Lydia,
My sister Nora will be going to Italy sometime in the middle of June and will be 60 miles from Grado. I hope she is able to visit the city. Same as before no contact from anyone. Did you receive my post from earlier today 5/25/2014?
Jim

 

My Sister Nora has returned from Grado. She spent an entire day with Freddy Furlan and both her and her husband Scott were treated like royalty. She was very impressed with Freddy and the people of Grado. I know for a fact that she was taken to the storage area and was able to view and touch the right stabilizer that was salvaged earlier. I have talked with Johnie Webb from Jpac in Hawaii four times and have received four different stories each time. I know there was no recovery but I was told that they finally picked up the skull fragment from the Grado Police Department. We will have to wait on their report. Freddy stated that JPAC left some diving equipment behind and is optimistic that they will return. I am going to leave out the negative news at this time. I am awaiting photos from my sister and a special gift sent personally from Grado to me. She wont tell me what it is???
Jim Fox (Nephew of Thomas M McGraw/Hanson crew)
https://www.facebook.com/pages/B-24-wreck-found-near-Grado-Italy/711878135519651

 

I am happy your sister had a good experience. It will be good to get official word of what has transpired or accomplished. It seems a strange that we had a lot of communications earlier in the year and now not any for a several months. It is important to get JPAC official information -- that should come from Mary or Mark so we know really what is going on.
thanks for keeping us posted
Lydia

 

I am the great niece of Adolph Turpin from Bedford, Indiana. Our family only discovered that his body had been recovered in November 2013 - until that time we were under the impression that he was MIA. So glad to find this information. His brother, Ralph Turpin, was my grandfather. The last of his siblings, his sister, Jesse Mae Turpin Oates passed away in 2004 I believe it was. I will be sharing this info with the rest of the family.

 

To: Niece of Adolph Turpin,
Hello, my name is Jim Fox and I am the nephew of Thomas M McGraw. I have been working on this very hard. Please contact me at lakewood1952@hotmail.com as I have a lot to share with you.
I am very excited to hear from you,
Jim

 

I sent you an email Jim. I found out some of this information from an Air Force friend of mine. On Veteran's Day 2013, I posted a copy of a letter from Adolph that was dated the day before they went missing, along with the article from the local paper at that time. My friend saw it and looked into it and lead me to a forum that had some initial information about the crash site. Since my Uncle Grant passed away this week, he was married to Adolph's niece, Nancy Turpin, I will be seeing a lot of the family in the coming days and I started looking again for more information to share with them. That is why I stumbled onto this site. I cannot wait to see the other information that you have.

Tina

 

Hi My name is Lydia (Fermano) Nelson. My Dad, Tony (Antonio) Fermano was the navigator on the Hanson Crew. He has given me and we have posted much information along with pictures and names. Also, there is a Hanson crew Facebook started by the niece of the pilot Howard Hanson. The link is here as well. I posted a reply to you on the 449th Facebook page. There is a 449 reunion going on right now and today there is supposed to be a forum on the recover of the crash site. Jim Fox has been working so hard with JPAC and others to try to push the cause. I have written and called those he has suggested. As I said in my other post to you, it is sad that parents and siblings who should know that Albert was recovered are dead. But they will guide the search from Heaven. My Dad is in the hospital right now, but has been telling everyone about the brothers who were lost on February 28, 1945. Nice to meet you. There are now several of us communicating.

 

[SIZE=12pt]Mr. Johnie Webb, Deputy to the Commander for External Relations and Legislative Affairs, JPAC, met on August 9 with family members of the MIA’s of both the Hanson and Kendall crews, 449th Bomb Group Association board members, and the sole survivor of the Kendall crew. The meeting took place in Dayton, OH. There were families representing 7 MIAs between the two crews.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]Mr. Webb gave an overview of the investigations of the two sites that occurred in May of this year. The Hanson site, since it is well known to local divers, is deemed to be in “imminent danger” of possibly being disturbed, and a recovery mission is scheduled to take place in fiscal 2015. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]The Kendall aircraft is in 15-20 feet of water and mud in a pond on a privately held island. It is likely that a coffer dam will have to be erected to be able to pump and excavate this site. JPAC is awaiting an engineering report with recommendations for how to proceed with this recovery. No timeline was given for a possible recovery mission.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]Mr. Webb also promised bi-monthly status updates to the MIA’s families and the Association regarding these sites. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=12pt]It is imperative that the involved parties continue their efforts to bring attention to these two sites and encourage the expeditious recovery of these MIA crews.[/SIZE]

 

Hi everyone
I appreciated the kind words for my father's recovery. He had been doing very well. However, now we find he has acute leukemia and limited time left. My sisters and I are so sad. My Dad says he has lived his life. We would love to have anyone who wishes to communicate with my Dad do so sooner rather than chance losing the opportunity. JPAC has not contacted him, even though I have written to them. We are not sure if Dad is someone who needs to share information, but once he dies, so do his stories. We have encouraged him to record some stories on the computer. But he has a lifetime of knowledge, but especially information regarding his service. We also wish that the Hanson crew recovery would happen in his lifetime. Thank you
Lydia (Fermano) Nelson
Dad's address is
24 Thacher Street
Malden, MA 02148 if anyone of the Hanson families or JPAC or the 449th wants to reach out.

 

I am very saddened to hear that your father's health has taken a bad turn. Please know our thoughts and prayers are with him and your family.

 

Lydia,

So sorry to hear about your dad's health. Haven't logged on in a while, but i'm glad I did. Please give him my families' best.

I used to live in Medford, Ma, and now live in Reading.

I would love an opportunity to meet your father, as would my father - if it's just too much for him, I understand, and would definitely send some mail in lieu of a visit.

Just thought it would be an unbelievable opportunity - never got the chance to meet my great Uncle Albert, but I'm just fascinated by his journey and that of the Hanson crew and your father.

i've got a handful of pictures and my great uncle's diary that I would love to share. My father also has an uncanny resemblance to Albert that is just amazing.

Looking forward to hearing from you either way.

Feel free to email me at my personal email address if you want: mafusco@hotmail.com

God Bless,

Michael Fusco
Great Nephew of Albert Acampora

 

Hi,
On behalf of the family of Antonio (Tony) Fermano, we want to write that we received a copy (Freedom of Information Law) of the report indicating what McCoffee wrote previously. I have written to JPAC again supporting the need to take care of the tasks at hand immediately and bring these remains home. Thank you Jim Fox for giving me the address and name. The petition should be signed and Everyone should be writing or calling Hawaii to get this to happen.

Tony passed away on September 24. I am sad that he never had the chance to meet Michael Fusco and his Dad. However, I hope that some day perhaps soon we can meet on the north shore and exchange pictures and stories. We hope to be able to get the few videos we were able to record of some of Dad's stories in a format to be able to share.
Jim Fox called Dad and it was nice he was able to talk about Tom McGraw.

We have a great loss; but we know Dad is in a better place. And the Hanson crew is together again.
God bless, Lydia

 

JPAC is saying that a recovery mission at the Hanson site will be undertaken in September 2015

 

Anyone who has been following any of the MIA cases is probably aware of how frustrating it is dealing with the various agencies charged with recoveries. There have been various congressional hearing which have found that DPMO and JPAC have been severely lacking in productivity. SecDef Chuck Hagel had previously announced plans to reorganize the invoked entities. It appears to be happening. It remains to be seen if this improves results.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2015/01/09/pentagon-sets-up-new-pow-mia-office/

 

Not sure if it will help, but our family wrote to Dad's senator (Markey) about the situation. Maybe if all of the families contact the legislators, changes will happen. This delay and frustration is unfair and frankly disrespectful to the families and the lost soldiers.
Lydia

 

There have been recent rumblings from Italy that plans were being set in motion to undertake this recovery mission. There is now confirmation that US Navy salvage ships are being scheduled for a recovery mission in the August - September time frame. Exact dates are forthcoming, but it appears that a 60 day mission will be mounted to conduct a thorough investigation/recovery of the site.

 

During the investigation of the Hanson site last May, JPAC also visited. The Kendall site nearby ( mentioned in several posts of this thread). A boot was recovered from the Kendall site containing bone fragments. Those remains have been identified as belonging to navigator Harry B McGuire. Today 2nd Lt McGuire will be laid to rest with full military honors at Jefferson Barracks Missouri. Six MIAs remain at the Kendall site. The aircraft is buried in water and mud on the island Morgo near Grado Italy.
http://www.kfvs12.com/story/29211809/70-years-later-wwii-soldier-returns-home