Data Sources - Air Force Manual No. 200-25A, Department of the Air
Force, Washington, October 16, 1961 page 1. Sanitized copy. National
Archives KOREAN Conflict Casualty File (KCCF) 1950-1954.
MIAs in Incident; Denn, Willard Martin; Nelson, Lawrence Archie;
Carlisle, Osborne Tommee
03/92 -- Korea, and the men yet to be accounted for -- the "official list" -- is a list of U.S. servicemen known to have been
held as prisoners of war by the red Chinese and North Koreans from the Korean War
but not released or accounted for by the communists, as released on May 27,
1957 at a hearing of the House Subcommittee on the Far East and Pacific by the Department
of Defense.
The lists, the printed minutes of the May 27, 1957 hearing and the
"sense of congress" resolution were subsequently buried in the
archives. The original list had 450 names compiled from American POWS who were
repatriated by the Reds, as well as from photographs released by the Reds, Chinese
radio propaganda broadcasts, and letters written home by captured men. The "revised" list was narrowed down in august of 1961 to 389 men, and
all were arbitrarily declared dead by the military services, the USG still
lists them as "unaccounted for".
Names and ranks only were released at the time, and printed in "The
Spotlight" on August 27, 1979, along with the above information and background.
Further information has been compiled by the P.O.W. Network from the Hawaii POW/MIA
Korean Memorial records, National Archives documentation, and public United
States Air Force documentation, and changes made to the original published
information. (FEBRUARY 1992)
Willard Denn is listed on the "HONOR ROLL OF FORGOTTEN AMERICANS" yet is noted as having died "while missing" by the National Archive.
03/11/2021
- KOREAN WAR
- UNITED STATES AIR FORCE
- Unaccounted For
On February 28, 1952, a B-29 Superfortress (tail number 69803A) with a crew of 12 departed Yokota Air Base, Japan, on bombing mission over Wadong, North Korea. The aircraft experienced a malfunction just as it crossed the North Korean coast, and turned south in hopes of reaching Allied territory. Once it became apparent that the B-29 would be unable to reach safety, all twelve members of the crew bailed out. The plane then crashed just outside of friendly territory, north of the modern-day Demilitarized Zone. Seven of the aircraft’s crew reached the ground safely, evaded capture, and returned to duty. One of the crew members was killed by an enemy sniper, and the remains of another were discovered near the crash site. The other three members of the B-29’s crew remain unaccounted for.
Airman First Class Willard Martin Denn, who joined the U.S. Air Force from Minnesota, was a member of the 344th Bombardment Squadron, 98th Bombardment Wing. He was a crew member aboard this B-29, and he went missing after bailing out of the aircraft. He was never reported as a prisoner of war, and his remains have not been recovered or identified. Today, Airman First Class Denn is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Based on all information available, DPAA assessed the individual's case to be in the analytical category of Deferred.
If you are a family member of this serviceman, DPAA can provide you with additional information and analysis of your case. Please contact your casualty office representative.