By New York Post (U.S.) | Created at 2026-09-05 19:21:22 | Updated at 2026-09-05 20:44:43
1 hour ago
The remains of a California airman killed during World War II have been identified more than eight decades after his B-24 bomber was shot down over Italy.
Army Air Force Sgt. Adolph P. Aguirre was just 21 years old when his plane went down on Aug. 16, 1943, while returning from a mission, according to his obituary.
Now, 82 years later, his family finally has answers and is preparing to lay him to rest later this month in Exeter, in Tulare County.
Aguirre will be buried next to his parents at Exeter District Cemetery.
Born in Visalia on Oct. 29, 1921, to Mari Pimentel and Margarito Aguirre, Aguirre graduated from Exeter Union High School in 1941 and enlisted in the military the following year, according to his obituary.
He was known as “Pancho” and was affectionately called “Chico” by his family. His obituary starts with the line, “Welcome Home Sergeant Aguirre!”
The pilot was serving as a radio operator and gunner aboard a B-24 Liberator heavy bomber when the aircraft was shot down over Italy.
Aguirre served with distinction, earning the Purple Heart and Air Medal.
His parents knew their son was missing but did not know what had happened to him. According to his obituary, they received a telegram notifying them that he was missing after the plane went down.
For decades, his fate remained unresolved.
That began to change in 2021, when the U.S. Army reopened the case involving remains that had previously been recovered in Italy and relocated from Lacedonia to Naples.
Aguirre’s cousin, Juan Aguirre, played a key role in the yearslong effort to determine whether those remains belonged to his relative.
In May 2022, the US Army Human Resources Command at Fort Knox, Kentucky, asked Juan Aguirre to provide a DNA sample that could be used in the identification process.
The remains were eventually exhumed from a cemetery in Naples and brought to a U.S. laboratory for examination. Investigators mainly used DNA analysis in an effort to identify them.
The process continued for years. In February 2025, Juan Aguirre and other relatives attended a meeting with the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency in Sacramento, the agency responsible for accounting for missing US service members.
Juan’s son, Julian, provided an additional DNA sample in hopes of giving investigators a more precise genetic comparison.
In May 2026, Aguirre’s family finally received the news they had waited so much time to hear: Aguirre had been identified.On June 16, they also learned that Aguirre would be returning to California.
More than eight decades after his parents were told their son was missing in action, Aguirre will now be laid to rest beside them.
According to his obituary, the public is invited to attend the services.
A visitation will be held Sept. 17 from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Exeter Memorial Building, 324 N. Kaweah Ave.
A graveside service will take place Sept. 18 at 10 a.m. at Exeter District Cemetery, 719 E. Marinette Ave., followed by a reception at the Exeter Memorial Building.
