World War II sergeant whose plane was shot down over Germany honored with reburial in California

LOS ANGELES (AP) — After 80 years, a World Conflict II sergeant killed in Germany has returned residence to California.

On Thursday, neighborhood members lined the roads to honor U.S. Military Air Pressure Tech. Sgt. Donald V. Banta as he was introduced from Ontario Worldwide Airport to a burial residence in Riverside, California.

Banta, 21, was killed in motion in early 1944 when his aircraft was hit by anti-aircraft hearth over Gotha, Germany, in line with Honoring Our Fallen, a company that gives assist to households of fallen army and first responders.

One of many surviving crewmembers noticed the aircraft was on hearth, then fell in a steep dive earlier than exploding on the bottom. After the crash, German troops buried the stays of 1 soldier at a neighborhood cemetery, whereas the opposite six crewmembers, together with Banta, have been unaccounted for.

Banta was married and had 4 sisters and a brother. He joined the army due to his older brother Floyd Jack Banta, who looked for Donald Banta his complete life however handed away earlier than he was discovered.

Donald Banta’s niece was current on the planeside honors ceremony on the Ontario airport coordinated by Honoring Our Fallen.

The stays from the aircraft crash have been initially recovered in 1952, however they may not be recognized on the time and have been buried in Belgium. Banta was accounted for Sept. 26, 2023, following efforts by the Protection POW/MIA Accounting Company throughout the U.S. Division of Protection and the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System.