U.S. forensic experts examined debris and human remains Monday from a B-24 bomber that crashed during World War II in southern China.
The experts planned to hike early Tuesday to the remote ravine in mountainous Guangxi province, near the Vietnam border, where the wrecked bomber was found.The seven-member team arrived Monday in Xing'an, the town nearest to the crash site, about 37 miles north of the tourist city of Guilin. The plane crashed a nine-hour walk from the nearest village.
The team examined remains of U.S. servicemen and debris recovered by Chinese officials. U.S. officials are to take formal possession of the human remains at a military ceremony Friday.
The bomber's discovery was made public in November, when Chinese President Jiang Zemin turned over photographs of five dog tags taken from the aircraft, as well as a videotape of the crash site, to President Clinton. The two met in the Philippines during a regional economic summit.
The bomber, with a crew of 10, left the 14th Air Force base at Liuzhou, China, on Aug. 31, 1944, to bomb Japanese ships in Takao Harbor in Formosa, now Taiwan.
The aircraft was diverted because of a Japanese attack on Liuzhou. It was en route to an airfield at Guilin when it crashed into the side of a 6,000-foot mountain and tumbled into a deep gully.
Chinese farmers discovered the crash site while searching for wild herbs.
According to army records, the crew members were 2nd Lt. George H. Pierpont, the pilot; 2nd Lt. Franklin A. Tomenendale, the co-pilot; 2nd Lt. Robert L. Deming, the navigator; 2nd Lt. George A. Ward, the bombardier; Staff Sgt. Anthony W. DeLucia, the engineer; Sgt. Ellsworth V. Kelley, the radio operator; Pfc. Fred P. Buckley, the radar observer; and gunners Staff Sgt. William A. Drager, Sgt. Robert L. Kearsey and Pvt. Vincent J. Netherwood.