Help Identify Unknown Sailors & Marines from the U.S.S. Arizona
“UNKNOWN” NO MORE: Support Operation 85’s mission to identify 85 or more crew members removed from the ship in 1942, or found near the U.S.S. Arizona after the attack, never identified, and left buried in commingled graves ten miles away from Pearl Harbor, marked only as “UNKNOWN USS ARIZONA”.
December 7, 1941 — A Legacy Still Unfolding
Today, we stand on the brink of history. Thanks to modern technology, determined research, and the unwavering dedication of families and volunteers, we are within reach of identifying 85 or more U.S.S. Arizona crew members who were found near or removed from the ship after the attack and have laid in commingled graves at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, just 10 miles away from Pearl Harbor. Their graves have been listed as “Unknown” for over eight decades — but that is about to change. Our work will not disturb the sunken battleship or the U.S.S. Arizona Memorial in any way. Instead, it will restore the identities of these heroes and remove the word “UNKNOWN” from their headstones, ensuring the final resting place of the entire U.S.S. Arizona crew.
AFDIL / NAVY / MARINES Project Numbers
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AFDIL Progress Tracking Report
“Operation 85” A Call For Help
Dear friends:
My name is Kevin Kline, and I am the Executive Director of the U.S.S. Arizona “Operation 85”. I am also the great nephew of GM2c Robert Edwin Kline USN, who was killed December 7, 1941 aboard the U.S.S. Arizona during the attack on Pearl Harbor. My uncle’s remains, along with 1071 of his fellow shipmates, were never recovered…..
WATCH: How Operation 85 Started
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U.S.S. ARIZONA BB-39 CREW BIOS December 1941
In 2015, Bobbie Jo Buel from Tuzson, Arizona, started a project to research and write a biography about each crew member killed aboard the U.S.S. Arizona on behalf of the U.S.S. Arizona Mall Memorial at the University of Arizona. Her amazing work was completed just in time for the memorials opening and is being published and preserved on this website. As we meet and discover new family members during “Operation 85”, the task of telling these servicemen’s story will always be a “work in progress”. Please reach out if you have any information, pictures or documents to share about a particular service member aboard the U.S.S. Arizona.
WATCH: The History of the USS Arizona Unknowns & “Operation 85”
News & Info about the U.S.S. Arizona BB-39 and "Operation 85"
Operation 85: Identifying Unknown U.S.S. Arizona Crew Members
The mission of “Operation 85” is to identify the “unknown” American service members from the U.S.S. Arizona buried at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hi.
It all starts and stops here. We need a large family participation to make this opportunity a reality. And this window of opportunity is getting smaller and smaller with each generation that passes. Thank you to over 1,200 family members that have already selflessly donated their DNA sample in an attempt to identify and match the unknown crew members.
Museums, parks, schools, military and veterans associations, etc., are all getting on board to spread the word and help us to find the family members of the unknown U.S.S. Arizona crew members. You can be a partner simply by sharing this page on your social media or through email. Please help us bring these unknowns home.
Join the Mission: Help Resolve and Identify 85 or More of the USS Arizona Crew that have been left buried as UNKNOWN in Commingled Graves.
Family Members, your participation is Needed!
It’s Safe, Secure & Free of Charge! Be a part of this historical mission and the collective goal to remove “Unknown” from over 140 graves.
