Army Air Corps Pilot 2nd Lt. John McLauchlen was laid to rest at the Fort Leavenworth National Cemetery more than 80 years after his bomber was shot down over Burma and he and his crew were listed as Missing In Action.

Richard McLauchlen Jr., accompanied by his wife, Anita, clutches the flag that adorned his uncle’s casket during the reinterment ceremony for 2nd Lt. John E. McLauchlen Jr. July 8, 2024, at the Fort Leavenworth National Cemeter, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. “There’s a lot of emotion involved in something like this, and even today it was quite emotional for me, and I usually don’t get emotional,” he said. Photo by Prudence Siebert/Fort Leavenworth Lamp

Chaplain (Maj.) Christopher ­Weinrich, Garrison Plans/Operations chaplain, recites the 23rd Psalm during the reinterment service for 2nd Lt. John McLauchlen Jr. July 8, 2024, at the Fort Leavenworth National Cemetery at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Photo by Prudence Siebert/Fort Leavenworth Lamp

The gravestone for 2nd Lt. John E. McLauchlen Jr. is displayed near the World War II pilot’s casket during his reinterment ceremony July 8, 2024, at the Fort Leavenworth National Cemetery, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. The gravestone was later set at his final resting place in Section T of the cemetery. Photo by Prudence Siebert/Fort Leavenworth Lamp

Cemetery technicians George Irelan and Kurtis Walker move the gravestone for 2nd Lt. John E. McLauchlen Jr. after his reinterment ceremony from the committal shelter to a vehicle for transport to McLauchlen's gravesite July 8, 2024, at the Fort Leavenworth National Cemetery at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Photo by Prudence Siebert/Fort Leavenworth Lamp

The Honor Guard fires volleys, followed by Taps played by bugler Sgt. 1st Class Nicholas Burkeen, right, Mission Command Center of Excellence, during the reinterment ceremony for 2nd Lt. John E. McLauchlen Jr. July 8, 2024, at the Fort Leavenworth (Kansas) National Cemetery. The World War II pilot went missing in action in 1943, and his unidentified remains were moved from Burma to Hawaii in 1947. He was officially accounted for earlier this year by the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency. Photo by Prudence Siebert/Fort Leavenworth Lamp

A B-1 bomber from the 7th Bomb Wing, Dyess Air Force Base, Texas, flies over the Fort Leavenworth National Cemetery during the reinterment ceremony for 2nd Lt. John E. McLauchlen Jr. July 8, 2024, at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. “Our flyover at Fort Leavenworth is a tribute to all the brave men and women who have served our country throughout history, connecting the past to the present,” said Lt. Col. Ryan Stillwell, commander of the 9th Bomb Squadron assigned to the 7th Bomb Wing. “It serves as a solemn reminder of the sacrifices made by those who came before us and a testament to the enduring spirit of service and dedication that defines our military.” Photo by Prudence Siebert/Fort Leavenworth Lamp

Emerson Kretzer, Patriot Guard Riders member from St. Joseph, Missouri, salutes during a service to honor 2nd Lt. John McLauchlen Jr. July 8, 2024, at the Fort Leavenworth National Cemetery at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Photo by Prudence Siebert/Fort Leavenworth Lamp

The Honor Guard transfers 2nd Lt. John E. McLauchlen Jr.'s casket from the hearse to the commital shelter for the reinterment ceremony for the World War II pilot July 8, 2024, at the Fort Leavenworth (Kansas) National Cemetery. Photo by Prudence Siebert/Fort Leavenworth Lamp

Col. Michael Goodwin, Joint Effects Division chief, Mission Command Training Program; Chaplain (Maj.) Christopher ­Weinrich, Garrison Plans/Operations chaplain; and Master Sgt. Kirk Mahaffey, Honor Guard NCOIC, salute as a hearse carrying the remains of World War II pilot 2nd Lt. John McLauchlen Jr. arrives at the commital shelter July 8, 2024, at the Fort Leavenworth National Cemetery at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Photo by Prudence Siebert/Fort Leavenworth Lamp

Col. Michael Goodwin, Joint Effects Division chief, Mission Command Training Program, presents the flag from atop 2nd Lt. John E. McLauchlen Jr.'s casket to the World War II pilot's nephew, Richard McLauchlen Jr., accompanied by his wife, Anita, during the reinterment ceremony July 8, 2024, at the Fort Leavenworth (Kansas) National Cemetery. Photo by Prudence Siebert/Fort Leavenworth Lamp

World War II pilot 2nd Lt. John E. McLauchlen Jr. was paid full honors and laid to rest in the Fort Leavenworth (Kansas) National Cemetery July 8, 2024, 80 years after going missing in action.

McLauchlen was last seen in 1943, during a mission in Burma (also known as Myanmar in Southeast Asia) with the 436th Bombardment Squadron, 7th Bombardment Group in the Army Air Forces.

“The flight report that was filed was from the plane that had been right next to him, and they watched John fly into a cloud bank — he was gaining speed because he was dropping altitude real quick, and there were three Japanese fighters on his tail at that time. That was the last anyone ever saw him,” his nephew Richard McLauchlen Jr. explained.

McLauchlen was officially accounted for on Jan. 25, 2024, by the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, using his nephew’s DNA to aid in analysis and identification confirmation. His unidentified remains had originally been moved in 1947 from farmland where his plane went down to the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, Honolulu, Hawaii.

Richard said it was a given that something would happen the day his uncle went MIA.

“The weather was bad; most of their fighter cover wasn’t even able to get off the ground; during the mission, one-third of the bombers had to drop out because of mechanical problems or some sort of a problem, and so they had a small contingency to do the mission,” he said.

After successfully completing the mission to destroy a railyard, McLauchlen’s plane was hit by groundfire that caused damage to the wingtip.

“They were flying into the sun, and so they didn’t see the Japanese fighters come in, and with only two fighters to protect the unit, it wasn’t very much help there,” Richard said. “My uncle was in charge of the mission that day, so his plane was right in the front, right in the center, the first plane the Japanese liked to shoot down, and once they started taking fire, and with that smoking wing, my uncle decided to drop out of the formation so that his plane wouldn’t cause anyone else to be shot down.”

Richard said throughout the process of finally bringing his uncle home, the military has treated his uncle like the hero he was.

“From the start of me getting involved with the military on Uncle John’s return, they treated him as a hero, from the very first second I talked to them. And then as we discussed more of what happened that day — that they lost so many planes before the mission even began, how they had no protection from fighters — that was a mission someone was going to get hurt, but they did it anyhow, and they were really successful in what they did.”

Richard said his wife, Anita McLauchlen, has learned a lot about their families through her genealogy research, and the couple said that even though they never met him, they now feel like they know “Uncle John” through the information and stories they’ve discovered.

“I started getting curious about my uncle a few years ago, because I didn’t really know him. I knew his name, his relationship to my father, but I didn’t really personally know him — it’s not that way anymore,” Richard said, recalling stories his dad used to share about spending summer vacations with his brother at their grandparents’ place in Michigan.

When Anita began researching, she found a group photo of McLauchlen posed with other members of his unit in front of an airplane, and her research and the couple’s curiosity about the lost uncle continued from there. Anita said she wants to discover more than names and dates in her ongoing genealogy research — she wants to find information that helps that person really feel known.

Richard agreed that details learned beyond the names and dates are important pieces to know to help understand the scope of events and what people experienced.

“His unit lost seven planes; 15 flew in damaged that could not be repaired; and they don’t tell you about those people who died, and those people who were injured on those planes — and then you stop to think, this is a daily thing. They lose so many people on every single day that I don’t know how they keep up with it. Every day new planes flying in to take the place of the old; every day more crew members arriving because they don’t have anyone to replace them with otherwise,” Richard said. “These are the things you don’t realize when you start doing this kind of research, unless you start finding the other stories.”

He said his dad, who served as a bombardier on a B24 bomber during World War II, died several years ago and couldn’t witness the ceremony, but he idolized his older brother. Bringing McLauchlen home to rest means more to Richard and his family than he said he could ever describe.

“I’m unable to explain; it’s just too important.”

Richard, himself a Vietnam veteran, said receiving the folded flag from atop his uncle’s casket put chills down his spine.

“I know what war is, and I know what Uncle John went through, and getting that flag is quite an honor,” he said.

Richard volunteered to serve as an Air Force medic from 1967-1971, working one year in the emergency room of the 483rd USAF Hospital in Cam-Rahn Bay, Vietnam. Even though medic had been his third job choice, one he filled in at the last minute, he continued in the field after his service in the Air Force as a surgical technologist working privately for orthopedic surgeons.

“The military really opened up some different options for me that I would have never considered otherwise.”

Richard, who is from St. Joseph, Missouri, said he is honored to know his uncle is now buried in a nearby military cemetery with grave markers representing every conflict.

“One of the things I knew was that he didn’t want to be forgotten, and now that he’s here in this cemetery, he’ll never be anonymous again,” Richard said. “He was unknown for 80 years, and now he’s here, he’s home, and he’ll never be lost again.”