Australian bomber shot down with 4 crew in 1943 identified off the coast of Papua New Guinea

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Officials have confirmed the identities of an Australian bomber and the remains of two air crew members more than 80 years after they crashed in flames off the coast of Papua New Guinea.

Beaufort bomber A9-186 was found in Australian mining billionaire Andrew Forrest’s ongoing search for his uncle Flying Officer David Forrest who has been missing in action since 1943, the Royal Australian Air Force said in a statement Wednesday.

David Forrest, 22, had been piloting a Beaufort bomber in a night raid against a Japanese air strip near the village of Gasmata on the south coast of the island of New Britain in May 1943 when he and his entire four-member crew went missing in action.

A9-186 was shot down by anti-aircraft guns during a morning attack on the same airstrip four months later. Both aircraft were from Number 100 Squadron based at Gurney air field at Milne Bay on the main island of New Guinea. Forrest's bomber was A9-188.