Wreckage of an American military plane from World War II was discovered in the remote Himalayan mountains of India, 77 years after it crashed, following arduous search operations that claimed the lives of three guides. The C-46 plane was carrying 13 people from Kunming in southern China when it disappeared amidst stormy weather over a mountain in Arunachal Pradesh during the first week of January 1945. Clayton Koles, an American adventurer who led the mission at the request of the son of one of the victims of the ill-fated flight, said, "We had not heard anything about this plane after the incident. It simply disappeared."
The mission took months, carried out by Koles and a team of guides from the local Lisu ethnic group, who traversed deep rivers and set up tents at high altitudes in extremely low temperatures. Three guides died from hypothermia during the early stage of the mission while camping amid a snowstorm in September. The team ultimately found the plane at the summit of a snow-covered mountain last month, where they were able to identify the wreckage through the plane's tail number. No human remains were found among the wreckage.
Koles was commissioned for the operation by Bill Scheerer, the son of an officer who was on board the plane when it crashed. Scheerer said via email from New York to the Associated Press, "All I can say is that I am very happy just to know the plane's location. It is both sad and joyful at the same time." He added, "I grew up without a father. All I can think about is my poor mother who received news about her husband's disappearance and found herself alone with a 13-month-old child." Hundreds of American military aircraft were lost around operational theaters in India, China, and Burma during World War II. While Japanese fire brought down some planes during the war, Koles believes that most aircraft fell due to ice, winds from hurricanes, and other extreme weather conditions.
