LOWER SWATARA TWP., Pa - A Dauphin County airman received a touching tribute at Harrisburg International Airport Tuesday, more than 70 years after he was killed in World War Two.
The remains of Army Air Force Captain Arthur Halfpapp of Steelton have been brought home, 71 years after his death.
“The services do not leave people behind,” John Wolf, Halfpapp’s nephew, said. “It's certainly closure for me, I knew this day would come; it's just a matter of when.”
There is also gratitude to Archeologi dell'Aria, an archaeological society in Italy that made the discovery 2 years ago on a dig at a site about 70 miles south of Venice. DNA testing recently confirmed that the remains were those of Halfpapp.
“It's amazing what they found,” Linda Wallett, Halfpapp’s niece, said.
Captain Halfpapp was flying a reconnaissance mission in April 1945 when the plane crashed, just two weeks before World War Two ended in Europe.
“All we knew was that his plane went down over in Italy, in the upper region, that was it,” Wallett said.
The memories of Halfpapp, lovingly called Archie by his family members, have been passed down from generation to generation.
“That he loved to fly, he was a good brother, all those brotherly and sisterly things,” Wallett said.
And from this, there’s hope that all the missing-in-action will someday be returned home.
“And for all our MIA people out there, it may not be today, it may not be tomorrow but eventually, somebody will discover you and bring you back,” Wolf said.
Halfpapp will be buried with full military honors Thursday in Annville.