Remains of airman found on King's Canyon glacier

[Andy in West Oz]

FresnoBee.com: Local Photo: Remains of WWII-era serviceman found on Kings Canyon glacier


National Park Service officials confirmed today that they have retrieved the remains of a World War II-era serviceman on the Mount Mendel glacier, about 100 feet from where the remains of another airman were found two years ago.
Officials said they will have the remains flown to Hawaii for identification by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command.
Body was found Wednesday by a Seattle-area author who was doing research on a book about the airman found in 2005, park service officials said today.
Peter Stekel was hiking in the backcountry when he found the body. He started hiking out Thursday and arrived at a ranger station Friday to let them know what he found. Rangers flew to the area Saturday to confirm the find, and again Sunday to begin making arrangements to get the remains off the mountains.
J.D. Swed, chief ranger of Kings Canyon-Sequoia National Parks, said there are indications the remains could be from the same plane as the one that carried Leo Mustonen, 22, of Brainerd, Minn. His remains were discovered by hikers in October 2005. But Swed said they will have to wait for positive ID to know for sure.
Park Ranger Debbie Brenchley said the airman's parachute was still folded up and the pull cord was on his chest.
A blizzard is believed to have caused the crash on the 13,691-foot Sierra Nevada peak, according to weather reports on Nov. 18, 1942. When the crash occurred, the training flight was about 200 miles off course. Others on that flight were: Army cadets John Mortensen, 25, of Moscow, Idaho; Ernest Munn, 23, of St. Clairesville, Ohio; and the pilot, 2nd Lt. William Gamber, 23, of Fayette, Ohio.

[morse1001]

Interesting story

[spidge]

It seems these bodies will continue to be found and given proper burial. It must be heartbreaking and joy to their surviving relatives.

[von Poop]

That's a hell of an end to a piece of research, finding the body.

Many more reports on the previous Mustonen case here:
Featured Mummy: Frozen WWII Airman

Cheers,
Adam.

[KriegsmarineFreak]

Very interesting story! How did an airman end up all the way over there? Airplane crash possibly?

[syscom_3]

Yes, the airmen were on a training mission and bailed out over that part of California, into a raging blizzard.

This area is doted with glaciers, covers quite a large area, is extremely rugged and is accessable only by backpackers.

[Final Flight]

For nearly two years I've been conducting research for FINAL FLIGHT, my book about the Beech 18 AT-7 Navigator #41-21079 that crashed into Mt. Mendel in Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks on November 18, 1942. The book project is the outgrowth of a magazine article I wrote for Sierra Heritage, published in Sept/October 2006. You can read a PDF version of the story at: http://www.peterstekel.com/PDF-HTML/Mystery.PDF

Two ice climbers discovered the body of Cadet Leo Mustonen on the Mendel Glacier in October, 2005. In August, 2007, while exploring the Mendel Glacier, my hiking partner and I discovered the body of a second cadet.

There are many confusing reports about the crash. Some were created by the lack of records from the time and others came about by poor research on the part of past writers and the media during Cadet Mustonen's recovery and identification. This is not to bash the work of these other writers! Being a freelance writer I fully understand the crush of deadlines and of having assignments in fields I do not fully comprehend or understand. Journalists these days must often file a story/day [or more]. It is a hard job and errors are often made.

To help with clearing up some confusion about the crew: There were four aviators [pilot 2nd Lt William Gamber and cadets Mustonen, Munn and Mortenson] aboard 41-21079 when it vanished.

In 1947, some UC Berkeley students found wreckage from what was eventually identified as the plane below Mt. Mendel. One of the students guided a small recovery team consisting of Capts Robert Lewis [age 28, from San Bernardino, CA], Andrew Walton and Robert Goulding and USFS Ranger Neil L. Perkins. They horse-packed in from Florence Lake to the crash site. According to the 1947 USAAF report, "The remains of the deceased were not recoverable."

In 1948, another attempt, commanded by Capt Roy F. Sulzbacher, from Ft Lewis, WA, to recover remains was made but to no avail.

If anyone has knowledge of how to contact any of these captains [or their families], I would be most appreciative.

I have designed a web page for FINAL FLIGHT where links to news articles may be found as well as information about my book project.

I have also posted some photos from my August trip on the FINAL FLIGHT page including images of the aircraft's radial engines and what I believe to be is an exhaust manifold. I would be very grateful to hear from anyone who is knowledgeable about the Pratt & Whitney engines used in the Beech 18 - particularly the cryptic writing found inside the engine cowling.

[Final Flight]

I've just gotten off the phone with Mrs. Jeanne Pyle, a sister of Ernest Glenn Munn. Glenn was one of the cadets on the ship that crashed into Mendel Glacier in 1942. JPAC notified her and her family this afternoon that the person I found on the glacier last August was her brother.

If you're interested, check my blog at <!-- m -->FINAL FLIGHT Blog Home<!-- m --> and I will post more data as it is known.

[syscom_3]

Great work you have done.

It truely is something you can be proud of ..... bringing closure for the families after all these decades.