An archaeological dig in Sicily has uncovered traces of a lost WWII American heavy bomber shot down in 1943, and possible human remains that could lead to the identification of five airmen whose bodies were never recovered. The six-week dig that ended in late December was carried out by a team from the Pentagon’s Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, which locates and identifies missing U.S. military personnel around the world. The site near Sciacca was identified in 2017 by investigators using historical records and metal detectors. This dig uncovered wreckage “consistent only to a B-25 aircraft,’’ said archaeologist Clive Vella, the scientific director of the expedition, contributing to hopes that any confirmed remains would be linked to the missing crew. "We owe (their) families accurate answers," Vella told the Associated Press. The North American B-25 Mitchell heavy bomber with a crew of six was one of 52 air losses with missing personnel in the area during WWII, mostly during 1943 as the Allies pushed into southeastern Sicily. It was shot down as it targeted a camouflaged German airstrip amid olive groves and pastureland on July 10, 1943. A German military report documented the crash of a U.S. aircraft about two kilometres (just over a mile) from the Sciacca airport, Vella said. One crew member was located immediately and buried in the town’s cemetery. The body was claimed in 1944 by U.S. military officials, but the other five airmen remained missing. In the intervening decades, the crash site “like most others in the Mediterranean region, was scavenged for metal, the land restored to its original use,’’ Vella said. “The scars of a crash were mostly gone.” The evidence, which includes possible human bones as well as potential remnants of the aircraft, has been transported to a laboratory in the U.S. for examination. Worldwide, there are more than 81,600 missing U.S. military personnel, including 72,350 from WWII, 7,550 from the Korean War and 1,584 from the Vietnam War. Over 41,000 of the total are presumed lost at sea.
In uno scavo archeologico in Sicilia, gli archeologi hanno trovato un bombardiere americano della Seconda Guerra Mondiale che fu abbattuto nel 1943. Hanno ritrovato anche gli scheletri di cinque soldati che pensano potranno essere identificare. Lo scavo era sotto il controllo del Pentagono: “POW/MIA Accounting Agency”. Questa Agenzia individua ed identifica i soldati militari statunitensi scomparsi in tutto il mondo. Il bombardiere B-25 Mitchell aveva un equipaggio di sei persone. Fu una delle 52 perdite aeree americane con i soldati scomparsi. Secondo un documento tedesco, l’incidente aereo fu vicino all'aeroporto di Sciacca. Il corpo di solo uno soldato fu ritrovato. Gli altri soldati sono rimsati dispersi. Gli archeologici porteranno gli scheletri e altre cose negli stati uniti per esaminarli. Secondo il Pentagono, ci sono 81.600 soldati statunitensi scomparsi in tutto il mondo, incluse 72.350 della Secondo Guerra Mondiale, 7.550 della guerra Coreana, ed 1.584 della guerra in Vietnam. Ci sono anche più di 41.000 soldati scomparsi sui mari.
