WWII veteran killed in Germany returns home to California

2024-12-25 09:41:12 source: category:Scams

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

On Thursday, community members lined the roads to honor U.S. Army Air Force Tech. Sgt. Donald V. Banta as he was brought from Ontario International Airport to a burial home in Riverside, California.

Banta, 21, was killed in action in early 1944 when his plane was hit by anti-aircraft fire over Gotha, Germany, according to Honoring Our Fallen, an organization that provides support to families of fallen military and first responders.

One of the surviving crewmembers saw the plane was on fire, then fell in a steep dive before exploding on the ground. After the crash, German troops buried the remains of one soldier at a local cemetery, while the other six crewmembers, including Banta, were unaccounted for.

Banta was married and had four sisters and a brother. He joined the military because of his older brother Floyd Jack Banta, who searched for Donald Banta his whole life but passed away before he was found.

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

RELATED COVERAGE Remains of World War II POW who died in the Philippines returned home to California California fines Amazon nearly $6M, alleging illegal work quotas at 2 warehouses

The remains from the plane crash were initially recovered in 1952, but they could not be identified at the time and were buried in Belgium. Banta was accounted for Sept. 26, 2023, following efforts by the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency within the U.S. Department of Defense and the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System.

More:Scams

Recommend

Jessica Simpson’s Sister Ashlee Simpson Addresses Eric Johnson Breakup Speculation

Ashlee Simpson is giving it all away.And she isn’t mincing her words to do it. Because when it comes

2015: The Year the Environmental Movement Knocked Out Keystone XL

This was the year that environmental groups won a seven-year battle against the Keystone XL pipeline

Today’s Climate: June 16, 2010

EPA: Climate Bill Costs Less Than Postage Stamp (AP) A climate and energy bill being pushed in the S