Indiana native killed 80 years ago in WWII aerial battle to be buried in Fairland

The POW/MIA branch of the Navy Casualty Office recently announced that Indiana native Delbert Martin, who died in aerial combat in the battle to secure Yap (modern-day Federated States of Micronesia), will be buried with full military honors at Fairland Cemetery, Fairland, Indiana, at 11 a.m. on Oct. 15.

Martin was previously buried as an Unknown at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Hawaii before his identification. 

The Navy is proud of its mission partnership with the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, without whom recoveries and identifications would not be possible. 

Martin’s niece, Barbara Martin, made the following statement:

"Several years ago, my brother Scott Martin was approached by Patrick Ranfranz of the Missing Air-Crew Project. This worthy organization makes it their job to identify missing in action soldiers, no matter how many years ago they disappeared. My brother sent in his DNA to help with the identification. Many years later, I got a call from the Navy saying they had positively identified the remains as those of my uncle, Delbert LaRue Martin.

In the time between finding out that LaRue’s remains would finally return to lie next to his parents, I’ve learned about him. Looking at photos of him, I see that he was a handsome young man with an eager look in his eyes. He was born February 13, 1922, in Shelby County, Indiana. Delbert grew up on his family’s farm. He enlisted in 1942 and trained to be a pilot. Delbert’s nickname during his time as a Hellcat Ace pilot in World War II was “Snuffy.” He was described by his first cousin Maurice Eugene Boring as “a little guy, but a ball of fire.” He was part of his squadron’s aerial victory during the first strike at Tokyo.

He was killed in action flying over Yap Island in Micronesia on March 21, 1945, at the age of 23. His remains were recovered after 70 years, and he will be buried next to his parents in Fairland Cemetery. He is survived by his nieces, Kathryn Brown, Natalie Shepard and Barbara Martin, and his nephew, Scott Martin. After his death, his parents, J. Franklin and Anna Marie Martin, his sister, Scytha Mae Brown, and his brother, Robert Martin, died.

I am grateful that LaRue’s remains have returned to his home. I know my grandparents would have been especially happy to have LaRue back and buried next to them.

Many thanks to the Navy for their persistence over 70 years in returning LaRue’s remains to his native soil and helping LaRue’s remaining family to attend this burial. The Navy has also been very helpful in making it possible for us to be at the burial and guiding us through the many details involved in bringing LaRue home. Thanks to Mike Freeman of Freeman Funeral Home, who helped me immensely with how to make decisions about the burial. Thanks also to Jeffrey Joyce for helping us find the cemetery where my grandparents are buried and where they placed a stone for LaRue. I am especially grateful to be in contact with my cousins, Natalie Shepherd and Kathy Brown, who I had not seen in more than 50 years."

In January 1945, Fighter Squadron (VF 12) was assigned to USS Randolph (CV 15). Its aviators flew the Grumman F6F-5 Hellcat, the US Navy’s primary carrier-borne fighter during World War II. In the latter part of 1944, the squadron supported the Invasion of Iwo Jima and raids on the Japanese home islands, including fighter sweeps and photographic missions over Yap (modern-day Federated States of Micronesia) and Ulithi Atoll in September 1944. During the war, the Japanese used Yap as an air and naval base.

On March 21, 1945, Martin took off on a combat and photographic reconnaissance mission over Yap Island. His aircraft, an F6F Hellcat, was last seen failing to pull up from a dive and crash into the ground in Gagil-Tomil, Yap Island, about one-half mine from his intended target. He was reported missing the same day and presumed dead on March 22, 1946. Ensign Martin’s remains were not identified in postwar accounting efforts.

During recovery and identification efforts on the Yap Islands after the war, the American Graves Registration Service (AGRS) disinterred one set of unidentified remains at a location designated “173-Jig” on the Yap Air Gunnery Target Map. The AGRS designated the remains as Unknown X-397 Manila Mausoleum (X-397) and buried them at the
Manila American Cemetery and Memorial (MACM).

Based upon their research and expertise, historians at the DPAA concluded Ensign Martin was a historical candidate for these remains recovered from Gagil-Tomil. After laboratory analyses, it was determined that the skeletal remains share a DNA
profile (mtDNA and SNP) with Ensign Martin’s relatives and align in expected biological profile based on skeletal analysis.

Martin was accounted for on June 18, 2025.

The Shelby County Post is a digital newspaper producing news, sports, obituaries and more without a pay wall or subscription needed.