[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 95 (Tuesday, July 8, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Page S7022]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               TRIBUTE TO NEW JERSEY WORLD WAR II HEROES

 Mr. TORRICELLI. Mr. President, I rise today to acknowledge the 
courage and sacrifice of 2d Lt. George A. Ward, of Hoboken, and S. Sgt. 
William Drager, of Hackettstown, NJ. Lieutenant Ward was the bombadier 
and Sergeant Drager the gunner on a B-24J airplane during World War II 
flying missions out of a base near Liuzhou, China.
  On August 31, 1944, Lieutenant Ward, Sergeant Drager and eight other 
crewmen off for what would be their second and final mission. The 
bomber successfully attacked Japanese ships and dropped mines near 
Taiwan before heading back to base. However, the plane was diverted 
because their base was under attack, and bad weather at the alternate 
landing site resulted in orders to circle while awaiting clearance to 
land.
  They never made it. Their B-24 crashed into a cliff 6,000 feet up the 
side of Maoer Mountain, southern China's highest peak, where dense 
bamboo and grotto-like slashes in the granite face swallowed the 
wreckage and the bodies of all 10 crewmen.
  The crash site lay undisturbed for 52 years until two Chinese farmers 
hunting for wild herbs found it last October. The discovery finally 
solved the mystery of what happened to the crew, and brought both some 
comfort and renewed heartache to the families of the airmen.
  As we approach the 221st anniversary of our Nation's independence, it 
is appropriate that we remember the bravery and commitment of 
individuals like Lieutenant Ward and Sergeant Drager. We continue to 
enjoy the freedoms that we have cherished since the founding of the 
Republic because of the sacrifice of millions of courageous men and 
women who heeded the call to duty when our Nation needed them.
  America is profoundly thankful for the patriotism of these men, and 
for this reason I stand today to recognize them for their 
accomplishments.

                          ____________________