Remains of US solider killed in WWII returned to Pennsylvania after 80 years | US news
The remains of a US soldier killed during World War II have been returned to his hometown in Pennsylvania 80 years after he died after DNA analysis identified him.
US army Pfc John A Walko, who died during the Battle of Aachen in Germany on October 20, 1944, was escorted from the Pittsburgh airport to Commodore, Pennsylvania, by a veterans motorcycle group earlier this month. According to cleveland.com.
Walko’s remains were not disclosed after the war. Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) in question. American Graves Registry Command At the United States Military Cemetery Henri-Chapelle in the Netherlands, a number of unknown remains were interned in 1944.
These remains were ultimately named “X-99 Henri-Chapelle”. Although it is known that these belong to someone killed by mortar fire in Aachen on October 20, 1944, the condition of these remains prevented a definitive identification.
About three years ago, the US Department of Defense and American Battle Monuments Commission X-99 exhumed Henri-Chepelle and transported the remains to a DPAA laboratory. DPAA scientists used “anthropological analysis as well as material evidence” and various DNA analyzes to positively identify X-99 Henri-Chapelle as Walko.
Sally Gaydosh, 96, told Cleveland.com that she had been waiting nearly eight decades to hear from her brother, sometimes even wondering if he would make it.
“And we waited and we thought, ‘Oh, we’re sure. We’re sure they’ll find it,'” Gaydosh was quoted as saying.
Sally’s daughter, Holly Gaydosh, described her uncle’s return home as “bittersweet.”
“He was the uncle who was always missing,” Cleveland.com reported.
Walko’s sister said she received a letter in 2021 requesting DNA to identify her brother. Although they thought the letter was a hoax, the family eventually sent DNA samples, according to Cleveland.com.
The DPAA deemed Walko liable in July 2025. “He called me on the phone and said he had good news,” Sally Gaydosh reportedly said.
As the group of veterans escorted Walko home, Commodore residents crowded along Main Street to greet him with American flags and raised hands, Cleveland.com reported. Local firefighters honored Walko by displaying a sprawling American flag atop a fire truck as the hearse drove to the funeral home.
Walko was buried on Wednesday. Cleveland.com said he was buried next to his mother, father and brother.
The DPAA announced on May 22 that another military member killed in World War II has been identified.
US army air force 2nd Lieutenant Robert J Barrat died during a bombing mission over Lutzkendorf, Germany, in 1945. Witnesses said they saw Barrat’s B-17G “Flying Fortress” bomber crash into another aircraft in the formation.
Barrat’s plane hit the ground and exploded. According to the statement, eight of the nine crew members on this plane lost their lives. Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA). The collective remains of Barrat and several crew members were buried in St Louis, Missouri, but they were exhumed two years ago for additional research.
Like Walko, Barrat was identified through DNA analysis. He will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery on May 27.
