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WWII Airman Buried 71 Years After Disappearance

Tech Sgt. Charles Johnston was on a mission over New Guinea to attack an anti-aircraft site when his plane was shot down in April 1944.
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A caisson carries the remains of U.S. Army Air Force Tech Sgt. Charles Johnston on March 2, 2015, during burial services at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va. Johnston died on April 10, 1944 when his B-24 was shot down over New Guinea. Kevin Wolf / AP

Tech Sgt. Charles Johnston was on a mission over New Guinea to attack an anti-aircraft site when his plane was shot down in April 1944. The Army recovered three of the 12 missing airmen from the B-24D Liberator after the war but the others were considered unrecoverable until wreckage was found in 2001. After excavations, three more of the crewmembers were buried at various sites last year and one more last week. A ceremony celebrating the crew is scheduled for later this month.

Johnston was buried with full honors at Arlington National Cemetery on Monday.

Image: William Mall, Jr.
Retired Maj. Gen. William Mall, Jr., the cousin of U.S. Army Air Force Tech Sgt. Charles Johnston, an airman missing from World War II, touches Johnston's casket following burial services at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va., Monday, March 2.Kevin Wolf / AP