Capt. Willibald C. Bianchi, an Army Medal of Honor recipient who survived many obstacles in World Battle II, solely to be killed in a horrible mistake, will lastly return residence to obtain correct burial 80 years after he was declared lacking in motion.
Bianchi, whose stays had been correctly recognized on Aug. 11 by the Protection POW/MIA Accounting Company, can be laid to relaxation in his hometown, New Ulm, Minnesota, in Could 2026, simply in time for Memorial Day, in keeping with Minnesota Public Radio.
Bianchi’s journey by means of World Battle II was harrowing. He survived getting wounded twice, the infamous Bataan Demise March, and captivity in a prisoner of struggle camp. The Army captain was killed at age 29 when his POW transport ship was bombed mistakenly by U.S. forces.
For his bravery and heroics, Bianchi was honored posthumously with the Medal of Honor, the nation’s most prestigious navy award. Bianchi is considered one of solely 473 troopers to obtain the Medal of Honor for acts of valor in World Battle II.
Poor Farm Boy Turned Soldier
After his stays had been recognized and his story got here to gentle, Bianchi was honored on the Minnesota Veterans Day program in Mankato.
U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar stated the New Ulm native was raised on a small hen farm. Tragedy struck Bianchi at a younger age. His father was killed in an accident, and Bianchi opted to go away highschool to take care of the household farm.
He enrolled within the College of Minnesota Farm College, and classmates tagged him with a brand new nickname – “Medals.”
“That’s as a result of he wore his ROTC uniform, partly as a result of he couldn’t afford clothes,” Klobuchar stated through the Veterans Day occasion. “But additionally, as a result of he was so proud.”
Regardless of the tragic manner he died, Klobuchar stated Bianchi’s story is considered one of sacrifice that may’t be forgotten.
“His story reminds us of a solemn promise that we carry each lacking hero residence,” Klobuchar stated. “Regardless of how lengthy it takes. The story reminds us that we will by no means totally repay what our veterans have given our nation, however we will honor their service now.”
Wounded A number of Occasions in Battle
When Bianchi was assigned to the Bataan Peninsula within the Philippines in 1942, little did he know his life would change.
As a commander, he led the Philippine Scouts of Firm D, 1st Battalion, forty fifth Infantry Regiment. On Feb. 3, 1942, he volunteered for a lethal task, clearing out machine gun nests manned by Japanese troopers. He was hit twice on the hand with bullets, however saved main the cost. He merely switched from a rifle to a pistol and solid forward, wiping out an enemy nest with a grenade. Extremely, Bianchi was wounded two extra instances, together with photographs to the chest, earlier than being knocked to the bottom by a tank spherical.
Bianchi’s actions within the Philippines earned him the Medal of Honor.
POW Time Results in Unlucky Demise
Bianchi, a 1st lieutenant on the time, was taken prisoner on April 9, 1942, and saved as a POW by Japanese forces till 1944, when Japan determined to move prisoners to Manila within the Philippines and switch them to the ship Oryoku Maru, ready to sail to Japan.
However an American plane attacked the ship, not understanding it was carrying POWs. The ship sank in Subic Bay, however Bianchi survived the assault. Bianchi was then shipped to Takao, Formosa, identified immediately as Taiwan, on the Enoura Maru.
Maybe having the worst luck possible, Bianchi’s ship was once more struck by U.S. bombers in January 1945, killing the soldier and different prisoners of struggle on board.
In 1946, after the struggle ended, the American Graves Registration Command started investigating what occurred to Bianchi and the opposite POWs. The group recovered 311 our bodies buried in a mass grave on a seashore. Investigators couldn’t determine the stays, however they despatched them to the Nationwide Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, aka “The Punchbowl,” in Hawaii for burial.
A number of many years later, by means of DNA testing and anthropological evaluation, Bianchi’s stays had been lastly recognized in a DPAA laboratory. The veteran’s title is listed on the Partitions of the Lacking on the American Cemetery and Memorial in Manila, grouped with different MIA troopers.
However after greater than 80 years, Bianchi has been accounted for and, in keeping with the DPAA, a rosette can be connected subsequent to his title to indicate the soldier has been discovered.
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