U.S. officials to identify WWII pilot

The Mustang P-51 is thought to have crashed in 1944 or '45

PARIS, France -- U.S. Army officials have travelled to France to identify the remains of a World War II fighter pilot and his wrecked plane.

Four army specialists were due to visit the crash site at Feignies, near the Belgian border, on Tuesday or Wednesday, a U.S. Embassy spokesman said.

The human remains, believed to be an American pilot, and the wreckage of the P-51 Mustang were discovered by a farmer doing drainage work in a field last Thursday.

French police have tentatively identified the remains of the pilot by his army dog tags as Lieutenant William Patton.

They said he could be related to the World War II commander General George S. Patton, but gave no evidence to support this.

Officers were also trying to determine when the plane crashed, thought to be in 1944 or 1945.

Human remains are routinely taken to a U.S. military forensic lab in Hawaii, the embassy spokesman said.

Reuters contributed to this report.

Remains of U.S. war pilot found
February 26, 2001

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