WWII Bomber Crash Left 11 Dead and ‘Non-Recoverable,’ 4 Are Finally Coming Home

An American flag is folded during the interment for World War II U.S. Army Air Forces Staff Sgt. Eugene Darrigan at the cemetery behind St. Mary's church in Wappingers Falls, N.Y., on May 24, 2025. Heather Khalifa/AP Photo

WAPPINGERS FALLS, N.Y.—As the World War II bomber Heaven Can Wait was hit by enemy fire off the Pacific island of New Guinea on March 11, 1944, the co-pilot managed a final salute to flyers in an adjacent plane before crashing into the water.

All 11 men aboard were killed. Their remains, deep below the vast sea, were designated as non-recoverable.