A story which began in Fiji during WW2 came to a close earlier this month when an Otago police officer presented the US Ambassador with dogtags and other memorabilia belonging to downed USAF pilot James W Blose.
“It is with the greatest honour, pleasure and respect that I now hand into your guardianship these items that can hopefully be returned to those that should have them,” Senior Constable Aaron Smith said as the taonga were blessed and handed to Ambassador Scott Brown at a ceremony at Portobello on 1 June.
Ambassador Brown will pass them on to officials in the US to reunite with First Lieutenant Blose’s whānau in Pennsylvania. He thanked Aaron for his “exceptional care and efforts” in ensuring the “precious taonga” are returned.
Southern District Commander Superintendent Paul Basham praised the commitment which led to the handover.
“Aaron brought a values-based approach to this kaupapa in all ways,” he says. “He recognised the artefacts as taonga, and ensured they were blessed by a local kaumatua as part of the handover.
“Honouring the wartime sacrifices of our ancestors is something we as New Zealanders do. Aaron has taken that a step further, making considerable effort for an unknown American airman, and ensuring the taonga revert to whānau back in the States."
The story, which Aaron recounted at the handover, began when a new Otago Peninsula resident was unpacking after her move from Auckland and found a small metal box which wasn’t hers amongst the cartons. In early May she handed it in at the Portobello Police station.
Inside were a 1942 Fijian penny note, several US Airforce buttons and dogtags for a James W Blose. Aaron got curious.
He started digging – initially uncovering the sad news that Lt Blose had died in an air crash. Growing fascination as he pieced together more of the story turned to excitement as he recognised he could possibly reconnect the long-lost taonga with those who would treasure them.
Aaron says First Lieutenant James William Blose left high school wanting to be a pilot. He initially studied Aeronautical Engineering and then in early 1941 joined the Air Corps.
His passion for flying was evident in a letter to his father asking him “to try to explain to Mother that this means almost everything to me”. His results back up that statement of commitment – he graduated seventh of 120 in his wing.
In January 1942 Lt Blose was deployed to Fiji, as part of the response to the Japanese attack on the American fleet in Pearl Harbour the previous December.
Three months later, on 22 April, he and another pilot were scrambled from Nausori Aerodrome, in the east of the main island of Viti Levi, to intercept Japanese fighters.
Bad weather saw them ordered to land in Nadi in the west - but while Lt Shaw landed safely, Lt Blose never made it.
Little was known about what happened until 2004 when some pig hunters on Viti Levu stumbled across the remains of an aircraft in dense bush. A painting of a cat on the tail, and later the discovery of other identifying material by American Embassy personnel suggested it was Lt Blose’s plane.
The finds prompted a thorough forensic investigation in 2006. The final piece, a DNA sample from Lt Blose’s niece, the child of his only brother, led to a conclusive identification.
Lt Blose’s remains were returned to the US wrapped in in traditional Fijian tapa, and on 29 September 2007 – 65 years after he disappeared - his remains were interred with full military honours at Hillcrest Memorial Park (now America’s Cemetery).
Now, 77 years after his death, his dogtags will follow him home.