EFFINGHAM, Ill. (AP) -- The remains of a World War II pilot killed in a midair collision during training over England will finally be laid to rest in his native southern Illinois.
The remains of Army Air Forces 2nd Lt. Charles "Butch" Moritz are to be interred Saturday in his hometown of Effingham. That'll be nine days after the remains were returned to the U.S.
Moritz was a member of the 496th Fighter Group stationed in England in June 1944 when his P-51C Mustang collided in midair with another U.S. plane over Lincolnshire, England. He was 21. The other pilot parachuted to safety.
Last September, members of a private English group that searches for vintage aircraft were scouring the countryside for the plane that collided with Moritz's aircraft when they happened upon Moritz's remains.
(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
