Second Lieutenant Fred L. Brewer Jr. had been missing for almost 80 years, following an Oct. 19, 1944, mission in Italy as part of the Tuskegee Airmen. On Dec. 6, Lt. Brewer was finally laid to rest in his home state of North Carolina. 

According to ABC News, Lt. Brewer was among 57 pilots tasked with escorting bombers from Ramitelli Air Field in Italy to their targets in Regensburg, Germany. His mission took a tragic turn when his aircraft rolled over with the canopy jettisoned. At the time, Brewer’s remains were unrecoverable, leading to his declaration as missing in action.

Now, 79 years later, Brewer has been laid to rest and honored for his service at the Salisbury National Cemetery.

As reported by ABC News, Brewer’s identification marks only the second case of a Tuskegee Airman being identified after years of being considered missing in action. Presently, 25 Tuskegee Airmen remain unaccounted for.

Clement Brewer shared the story of a DNA testing kit that led to the identification of Lt. Brewer’s remains. In an interview with ABC News, he explained that a package with Lt. Brewer’s story, along with a DNA testing kit, was sent to his parents’ home.

Through DNA testing, Clement Brewer discovered that he was the third cousin of Lt. Fred Brewer. “It was a good thing being connected to a Tuskegee airman,” Clement Brewer told ABC News.

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Tuskegee Airmain Missing in Action

Following World War II, his body was recovered from a civilian cemetery in Italy, but technological limitations at the time prevented the identification of the remains.

In 2011, DPAA researchers uncovered an Italian police report indicating the recovery of remains from a crashed fighter plane on October 19, 1944.

Over a decade later, the remains were disinterred and sent to the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency’s lab in June 2022. The DPAA announced Lt. Brewer’s identification in September.

On Thursday, Lt. Brewer’s final journey took him from the DPAA lab in Omaha, Nebraska, to his final resting place in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Descendant Clement Brewer and his family attended the service to honor their ancestor, a Tuskegee Airman who had been missing in action.

In an interview with Good Morning America, Clement Brewer shared the pride he feels being related to Lt. Brewer. “Fred Brewer was just being the best example that he could be as an African American,” Clement Brewer said.