SHAWANO, WI — A World War II U.S. Army Air Force veteran from Shawano has now been accounted for. That announcement comes from the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency in Washington D.C. Private Herbert McLaughlin was stationed at Hickam Airfield when Pearl Harbor was attacked by Japanese air forces on December 7, 1941. His remains were among 12 unidentified service members recovered and later buried at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii. Those remains were exhumed in 2019. DNA analysis resulted in a positive identification. McLaughlin will be buried in Shawano at a date to be determined.

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency identifies remains from the Dec. 7, 1941 attack on Hickam Airfield as those of Pvt. Herbert McLaughlin (McLaughlin family photo)
Shawano WWII airman identified
May 20, 2025 | 2:29 PM