A piece of a World War II fighter plane that crashed 80 years ago and belonged to the country’s top ace, Maj. Richard Bong, has been found and returned to his home state of Wisconsin.

Recovery Efforts

The Richard I. Bong Veterans Historical Center worked with the organization Pacific Wrecks to find what was left of the plane scattered on a remote hill in Papua New Guinea.

The P-38 Lockheed Lighting was flown by Maj. Richard Bong, who holds the record for the most shoot-downs with 40 confirmed combat victories in the air. The plane was named after his future wife, Marjorie ‘Marge’ Vattendahl.

Bong used the plane for dozens of missions, but another pilot flying it was forced to bail out in March 1944, sending it crashing into the rainforest.

Preserving History

‘It is such an important piece of World War II history, and Richard Bong is such a notable figure that we thought it was important to preserve at least a piece of the airplane,’ said Briana Fiandt, curator of collections and exhibits at the Richard I. Bong Veterans Historical Center.

The Wisconsin Air National Guard helped fly the wingtip to the US, and it is now part of the collection at the Richard I. Bong Veterans Historical Center in Superior, Wisconsin.

Original reporting: KEYT (Ventura/Santa Barbara) — read the source article.