DPAA accounts for Dutchess Co. WWII airman
WAPPINGER'S FALLS, N.Y. (NEWS10)-- A Dutchess County U.S. Amy Air Forces Staff Sergeant is now accounted for 80 years after he died during a World War II bombing mission. The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) accounted for Eugene J. Darrigan, 26, of Wappinger's Falls on September 20, 2024.
Darrigan was a radio operator aboard the "Heaven Can Wait" B-24D bomber plane when it crashed into the water after taking off from the Nadzab Strip in Papua New Guinea. The bomber aimed to attack the Boram Airfield and Aar Point of Hansa Bay in New Guinea.
Officials with DPAA said it's believed an anti-aircraft hit the plane, which caused an ordnance that hadn't been dropped to explode. Others who observed the crash said the aircraft pitched up before banking left and crashed.
Crews immediately searched for the wreckage for four years before determining it as non-recoverable. However, after another search between 2013 and 2017, crews found the wreck using sonar scans in October 2017.
Excavation of the crash site began on March 9, 2023, and finished on April 13, a little over a month later. DPAA used dental records and anthropological analysis to identify Darrigan's remains.
Darrigan's name had been added to Manila American Cemetery and Memorial's Walls of the Missing in the Philippines. His name will have a rosette placed next to it, indicating his remains were found.
Darrigan had been assigned to the 320th Bombardment Squadron, 90th Bombardment Group, 5th Air Force. A burial date has yet to be set.