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| USAAF 5th AF 8th FG 35th FS  USAAF 1942 |
Pilot 1st Lt Robert Parker, O-661368 (MIA / KIA, BR) Lansing, MI MIA November 15, 1943 at 10:05am MACR 1191 Aircraft History Built by Curtiss in Buffalo, New York. Constructors Number 29271. Delivered to the U.S. Army Air Force (USAAF) as P-40N-5-CU Warhawk serial number 42-105509. Disassembled and shipped overseas to Australia and reassembled. Wartime History Assigned to the 5th Air Force (5th AF), 8th Fighter Group (8th FG), 35th Fighter Squadron (35th FS) "The Black Panthers". No known nose art or nickname. Squadron letter "W" was painted on both sides of the nose. The spinner was painted yellow with a white stripe on the leading edge of the wing and the lower sides of the nose. When lost, engine V-1710-81 serial number 43-107725. Armed with six .50 caliber machine guns, makers and serial numbers not listed in Missing Air Crew Report 1191 (MACR 1191). Mission History On November 15, 1943 took off from 3-Mile Drome (Kila) near Port Moresby piloted by 1st Lt Robert Parker on a patrol mission from Kaiapit to Lae with wingman Lt. West. The weather was broken overcast from 1,000' to 1,200' with scattered clouds around the foothills of the mountains and visibility of roughly 15-20 miles. Over Kaiapit, the formation encountered Japanese fighters they claimed to be "Zeros" [Ki-43 Oscars from the 248th Sentai]. During the combat, West claimed to shoot down a "Zero" [Ki-43 Oscar] off the tail of Parker's P-40, then Parker made a diving turn and shot a Zero off the West's tail, and claimed a fighter shot down. At 10:05am last seen pulling up towards another, this P-40 collided with a "Zero" [sic Ki-43 Oscar] tearing off the wing and causing the P-40 it to spin towards the ground north of Sagarak near Kaiapit at roughly Lat 06.12 Long 146.10. Neither pilot in the collision was observed to bail out. Wingman west followed this P-40 down to 500', but did not observe it to crash. Parker failed to return and was officially credited with two fighters shot down. Major Emmett S. Davis statement, Missing Air Crew Report 1191 (MACR 1191) page 8: "On November 15, 1943, First Lieutenant Robert Parker was seen to collide with a Japanese 'Zeke' Type fighter [sic Ki-43-II Oscar] in an aerial combat which took place over and near Kaiapit, New Guinea, at approximately 1005L. First Lieutenant Richard L. West saw the accident which resulted in both right wings of the two colliding planes being broken off. Lt. West observed both planes spinning and circled them until they were just a few hundred feet above the terrain. He did not see either pilot attempt to parachute out. Lieutenant West did not see either plane crash because of low clouds and enemy opposition around him." Search Afterwards, P-40N pilot Lt. Richard L. West and P-40N pilot Major Emmett S. Davis took off from Nadzab Airfield at 2:00pm on a search mission, but failed to located the crash due to rough terrain and partial jungle coverage. Later, two liaison planes also searched without result. Major Emmett S. Davis statement, Missing Air Crew Report 1191 (MACR 1191) page 8: "A thorough search of the area where the accident occurred was made by Major Emmett S. Davis, and First Lieutenant Richard L. West, both of the 35th Fighter Squadron. This reconnaissance was carried out in P-40 type aircraft. A second search was also made by two light reconnaissance planes with nil findings on either mission." Wreckage This P-40 crashed a half day's walk from Warom village and was known to the local community. During 2010, MIA Hunters reported a portion of the P-40N tail assembly with the tail number to the U.S. government as a possible Missing In Action (MIA) site. During September 2018, a team from Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) and found several pieces of aircraft in Warom village but were unable to visit the crash site but did find a propeller blade and a local resident was able to provide photos of the crash site. During May 2019 another team from Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) to Warom village after the community reported they had found remains at the crash site. The remains were turned over to the team plus a piece of aircraft that were transported to the DPAA laboratory at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam (JBPHH) for further analysis. The recovered remains were identified using dental and anthropological analysis, plus material and circumstantial evidence. DNA testing was also conducted against Family reference samples (FRS) using mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and Y chromosome DNA (Y-STR) analysis and proved to be a match for Parker. Memorials Parker was officially declared dead the day of the mission. He earned the Silver Star, Distinguished Flying Cross, Air Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster and Purple Heart, posthumously. Parker is memorialized at Manila American Cemetery on the tablets of the missing. On March 9, 2011 the Department of Defense (DoD) announced Parker was identified. On August 9, 2021 he was buried with military honors in Lansing, MI. References NARA World War II Army Enlistment Records - Robert Parker USAF Serial Number Search Results - P-40N-5-CU Warhawk 42-105509 "105509 (8th FG) MIA Nov 15, 1943, New Guinea. MACR 1191" USAF Historical Study No. 85 USAF Credits For The Destruction of Enemy Aircraft, World War II Alphabetical: Parker, Richard 147 (PDF page 154) Missing Air Crew Report 1191 (MACR 1191) created November 20, 1943 November 1943 USAAF Overseas Accident Reports does not list this loss Lansing State Journal "Local DFC Holder Missing In Action: First Lieut. Robert Parker Was Flying Fighter in New Guinea Area" December 17, 1943 page 1 American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) - Robert Parker FindAGrave - 1Lt Robert Parker (photo, tablets of the missing) PNG Museum Aircraft Status Card - P-40 Kittyhawk 42-105509 pilot Parker 248th Hoku Sentai "Hard Luck" Fighter Unit, Part 2 by Richard Dunn "Two P-40s were lost, one from a collision with a Japanese fighter during a head-on pass [P-40N 42-105509 pilot Parker]" DPAA News Release No: 21-027 "Pilot Accounted For From World War II (Parker, R.)" March 15, 2021 DPAA Personnel Profile - 1st Lt. Robert Parker Contribute Information Are you a relative or associated with any person mentioned? Do you have photos or additional information to add? Last Updated
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 P-40  MIA 1 Missing Resolved  Map November 15, 1943 |
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