Remains Of WWII Servicemen Buried

ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) -- The remains of nine servicemen who died when their bomber was shot down in the Pacific during World War II have been buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

The men, including Army Air Forces Tech. Sgt. Robert L. Christopherson of Blue Earth, Minn., were buried in a single casket with full military honors Wednesday.

The Pentagon says the men took off in their B-17E Flying Fortress named "Naughty But Nice" in June 1943 from an airfield in Papua New Guinea. The plane was damaged by anti-aircraft fire and then shot down by Japanese fighter aircraft.

Remains were recovered in 1949 on New Britain Island but couldn't be identified at the time. The remains were buried as unknown at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu.

In recent years, the remains were exhumed and identified using DNA techniques and dental comparisons.

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