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Approximately one hour after midnight on April 4, 1952, a B-26 Invader (tail number 44-34300A, call sign Pintail 26) departed Kunsan Air Base, Korea, with a crew of three aviators. The briefed mission was a night intruder operation targeting main supply routes between Sinanju and the Yalu River (the border between China and Korea). As the aircraft approached the target area, the pilot reported they were unable to proceed to the primary target due to bad weather. A short time later, ground control diverted Pintail 26 to the supply route running from Haeju to Ongin to Chengnyon. This was the last known radio contact anyone had with Pintail 26, and it failed to return to base. All searches for the aircraft and crew were unsuccessful. At this time, there is no reliable information that any member of this aircrew was ever alive in enemy hands.
Captain James Alward Van Fleet Jr., who entered the U.S. Air Force from Florida, was assigned to the 13th Bombardment Squadron (Light), 3rd Bombardment Group. He was the pilot this Invader when it went missing. As the son of the Commanding General, Capt Van Fleet would have had special value as a prisoner of war (POW). However, he was never reported as a POW and was not seen at any known holding point, interrogation center, hospital, or permanent POW camp. He remains unaccounted-for . Today, Captain Van Fleet is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific. His name is also inscribed on the Korean War Veterans Memorial Wall in Washington, DC, which was updated in 2022 to include the names of the fallen.
Based on all information available, DPAA assessed the individual's case to be in the analytical category of Deferred.