Roland Laurier Albert was born on July 4, 1915 in Lewiston, Androscoggin County, Maine. He was the son of Joseph Albert and Emma Berube Laverdiere. Navigator aboard B-29 42-6286 "Praying Mantis" of the 58th Bomb Wing. They were returning from a mission to Yawata, Japan on Aug 20 1944 and disappeared.

Years later, a Chinese team hiked up a local mountain and found the remains of the crew and plane. Artifacts from the wreck were transported to the US and donated to the New England Air Musuem in Hartford, CT where they are on permanent display. The cause of the wreck was determined to be a lack of fuel, and poor visibility which caused them to crash into the mountain.

He is now buried in the Zachary Taylor National Cemetery, Louisville, Jefferson County, Kentucky, USA together on a group headstone with his crew.

He served as an aviator in WWII and was one of over 2000 Americans who lost their lives defending China from their Japanese invaders from 1941-1945. He is commemorated on the The Monument to the Aviation Martyrs in the War of Resistance Against Japan in Nanjing, China.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com