Beyond the Battlefield: The Search for World War II’s Missing in Action by DPAA and Its Partners

Part of: Society for Historical Archaeology 2024

This collection contains the abstracts of the papers presented in the session entitled "Beyond the Battlefield: The Search for World War II’s Missing in Action by DPAA and Its Partners," at the 2024 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency's mission is to provide the fullest possible accounting for our missing personnel from past conflicts to their families and the nation. As of June 2023, over 81,000 Americans remain unaccounted for. Of this number, more than 72,000 of these individuals are from the Second World War. The search for these service men and women is a global effort that requires teamwork, innovation, and adaptation.

This symposium offers a closer look at field efforts on World War II sites led by both DPAA and partner organizations. The different approaches, methodologies, and collaborations highlighted in this session offer a window into the wide range of archaeological approaches taken to document and ultimately resolve cases as part of our nation’s accounting mission.

Other Keywords
Survey • WWII • Aviation Archaeology • Magnetometer • Remote Sensing • Field Methodology • Geophysics • Forensic Archaeology • World War II • Philippines

Geographic Keywords
Pacific • Europe • South Asia • global

Resources Inside This Collection (Viewing 1-8 of 8)

  • Documents (8)
Documents
  • Archaeological Forensic Recovery for Repatriation: WWII Bomber Crash Site in Germany (2024)
    DOCUMENT Citation Only Alex DeGeorgey.

    This is an abstract from the session entitled "Beyond the Battlefield: The Search for World War II’s Missing in Action by DPAA and Its Partners", at the 2024 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology. This study focuses on the archaeological forensic recovery conducted at a WWII U.S. bomber crash site in Germany. Through a multidisciplinary approach, including excavation techniques, forensic anthropology, and historical analysis, the research aims to systematically recover and...

  • An Equal Access Overview Of Remote Sensing Survey Strategies Employed By DPAA And Its Partner Organizations (2024)
    DOCUMENT Citation Only Kyle T Lent.

    This is an abstract from the session entitled "Beyond the Battlefield: The Search for World War II’s Missing in Action by DPAA and Its Partners", at the 2024 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology. DPAA's mission is to provide the fullest possible accounting for America's MIA service personnel. A goal of the archaeology that DPAA and our partners conducts is to ultimately recover osseous remains and other material evidence to make a legal identification of our nation's...

  • Examples of DPAA Partnerships & Innovations Recovery Methodology (2024)
    DOCUMENT Citation Only Megan Lickliter-Mundon.

    This is an abstract from the session entitled "Beyond the Battlefield: The Search for World War II’s Missing in Action by DPAA and Its Partners", at the 2024 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology. The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) is responsible for repatriating America's missing service personnel from overseas conflicts. In the past 10 years DPAA has partnered with external organizations to increase the number of projects completed per year. These partner survey...

  • Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) Survey of WWII American Aircraft Impact Craters (2024)
    DOCUMENT Citation Only William J Chadwick. Andrea Palmiotto. Parker J Chadwick.

    This is an abstract from the session entitled "Beyond the Battlefield: The Search for World War II’s Missing in Action by DPAA and Its Partners", at the 2024 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology. Geophysical surveys are regularly used to examine archaeological landscapes and features. Metal detection is often used during historic aircraft crash site recovery missions to define the lateral extent of craters but do not typically penetrate beyond a meter below ground surface....

  • Marine Imaging Technologies and DPAA: Keeping America’s Promise Through a Public and Private Partnership (2024)
    DOCUMENT Citation Only Evan J Kovacs. Calvin Mires. David Ullman. John Ben Roberts.

    This is an abstract from the session entitled "Beyond the Battlefield: The Search for World War II’s Missing in Action by DPAA and Its Partners", at the 2024 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology. Starting in 2022, DPAA has partnered with Marine Imaging Technologies, to conduct phase I and II projects in Guam, Chuuk, and Philippines, looking for and documenting various WWII aircraft. Some of these sites present logistical challenges, such as high seas, fast currents, and...

  • Methodological Considerations for Locating and Identifying Submerged Aircraft Sites in Environments with High Acoustic Reflectivity (2024)
    DOCUMENT Citation Only Austin L Burkhard. Joseph Grinnan. Frederick H Hanselmann.

    This is an abstract from the session entitled "Beyond the Battlefield: The Search for World War II’s Missing in Action by DPAA and Its Partners", at the 2024 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology. Geophysical surveys utilize a suite of equipment to identify and locate submerged archaeological sites. Although the marine magnetometer has been an integral tool in locating shipwreck sites, the primary tool typically employed in the search for aircraft sites is acoustic imagery...

  • Recovery as Care Work: The Center for Recovery and Identification of the Missing (CRIM) (2024)
    DOCUMENT Citation Only Benjamin J Schaefer. Aldo Foe. Caitlyn Dye. Caleb Kestle.

    This is an abstract from the session entitled "Beyond the Battlefield: The Search for World War II’s Missing in Action by DPAA and Its Partners", at the 2024 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology. Care is a fundamental aspect of human life and highlights how communities exhibit relationships of dependency and support as expressions of care. Care is viewed as essential in understanding our shared human experience, however, it is not a fixed attribute but rather a relational...

  • Remains to Recover? The Havoc A-20 Deep Ocean Investigation, May 2023 (2024)
    DOCUMENT Citation Only Hans K. Van Tilburg. Daniel Wagner. Alba Mazza.

    This is an abstract from the session entitled "Beyond the Battlefield: The Search for World War II’s Missing in Action by DPAA and Its Partners", at the 2024 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology. On 29 September 1941, a Havoc A-20 bomber aircraft departed the island of O`ahu for a routine training mission. Following engine failure, the plane crashed into the ocean, and the pilot and observer were lost. In March 2011, researchers from the Hawai`i Undersea Research...