World War II Database

On 18 Nov 1942, an AT-7 Navigator aircraft took flight on a routine training mission from Mather Field in California, United States. The aircraft never returned. Although the wreckage was found, bodies were not, at least not until Oct 2005, when hikers stumbled upon a frozen body. Then, in 2007, two hikers, Peter Stekel and his friend, found another. Both bodies were frozen in glacier. The first body was identified to be Leo M. Mustonen. The second body was only recently identified as Cadet Ernest G. Munn, who was only 23 years of age at the time of the crash. On 10 Mar 2008, the United States Department of Defense announced the finding, citing DNA analysis as the method of identification. Munn is expected to be buried in May 2008 in Colerain, Ohio, United States, near where his family now lives.

"You don't often have an opportunity in life to provide people with the answers to questions that they have always wanted to know the answer to," Stekel told the news network CNN on 11 Mar 2008. "Having the ability to supply that information just makes me really happy."

The search for other crewmen on that flight continues.

For more information:

CNN: Frozen remains of WWII airman identified
WW2DB: AT-7 Navigator Aircraft