Eugene W. Krute was born on August 6, 1920. he served in the 491st Bomber Squadron, 341st Bomber Group, Medium as a Second Lieutenant and Bombardier on B-25 during World War II.

On January 9, 1945, a group of B-25 aircraft departed the air field at Yang-ki, China, for a bombing mission to strike Japanese targets located in French Indo-China (now Vietnam). As the formation approached the Red River valley, the ceiling suddenly lowered. Some aircraft attempted to climb above the overcast.

B-25 Mitchell #43-4361 disappeared into the clouds and was never seen to emerge. Later, French observers who had been in the area reported "that the aircraft flew into the ground." All 6 crew members were killed.

The French recovered all the bodies and buried them, using the wreckage of the aircraft as a marker. Second Lt. Krute's body was later recovered, returned to the U.S., and buried in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, Honolulu, Honolulu County, Hawaii, USA.

He 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