Arunachal: US Air Force’s ‘Assam Draggins’ honour WWII fallen heroes at Hump Museum in Pasighat
The Hump air route passes over Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Tibet, Myanmar, and Yunnan (China).
PASIGHAT– ( By Maksam Tayeng)- While recalling to the huge sacrifices of their fellow airmen of 25th Fighter Squadron, then nicknamed ‘Assam Draggins’ of US Air Force who laid their lives for the cause of their nation in the World War-II (1942-45) as many aircraft crashed down in the mountainous regions of present day Arunachal Pradesh, the officials and fellow men from 25th Fighter Squadron from US Air Force on Sunday visited the ‘The Hump Museum’ located here in Gumin Nagar, Pasighat and paid homage to the lost lives.
While visiting ‘The Hump’ WW-II Museum here in Pasighat on Sunday, Lt. Col. Justin “Riot” Davis and Capt. Nivruth Maramreddy along with their unit of 25th Fighter Squadron from US Air Force said that, they came to pay homage to the lost lives of many airmen who died in the mountainous region of Arunachal Pradesh and other regions during World War-II due to the crash down of military aircrafts of the US.
“We are very delighted and emotionally touched by visiting this beautiful museum ‘The Hump‘ and paying homage to our fellow airmen from 25th Fighter Squadron ‘Assam Draggins‘ who lost their lives while flying for the allied forces from Assam to Yunnan province of China via mountainous regions of Arunachal Pradesh”, added the officials from the squadron.
It is important to recall here that, the 25th Fighter Squadron ‘Assam Draggins’ flew its first aerial combat mission over “the Hump” on Sept. 25, 1942, flying a combat escort mission. After the squadron moved to Dinjan in Assam, India, combat activity increased. It was here that the 25th picked up the name “Assam Draggins”.
The squadron’s military aircraft transported nearly 6,50,000 tonnes of supplies like fuel, food, and ammunition. Some 650 aircraft crashed while negotiating the terrain and extreme weather conditions in their combat mission over ‘the Hump’ while flying for the allied forces from Assam to Yunnan in China.
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The pilots of the Allied forces flying from airfields in Assam to those in Yunnan nicknamed the route ‘The Hump’ because their aircraft had to navigate deep gorges and mountains rising beyond 10,000 feet. In 2016-17, the US Defense Prisoner of War/Missing in Action Accounting Agency (DPAA) deployed a team for 30 days in search of remains of unaccounted-for American airmen.
The remains of about 400 US airmen are believed to be located in the Himalayan Mountains in the northeast, particularly in Arunachal Pradesh. The Hump air route passes over Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Tibet, Myanmar, and Yunnan (China).
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‘The Hump’ World War-II Museum (remembering the ‘Aluminum Trail’) here at Pasighat was opened for public after Chief Minister Pema Khandu and US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti inaugurated ‘The Hump WWII Museum’, the second museum in Asia on 29th November 2023 last.
On the part of Hump Museum management team and Abor Country Travels & Expedition who coordinated and facilitated the visit of 25th Fighter Squadron of Assam Draggis, John Tayeng stated as: “it was an honor to welcome Lt. Col. Justin ‘Riot’ Davis and his Unit of 25th Fighter Squadron-Last Assam Draggins at WW-II ‘The Hump Museum’ Pasighat on Sunday. Eighty one (81) years later, the ‘Assam Draggins’ returned to Assam and to Pasighat Arunachal Pradesh to pay homage to the fallen heroes of the war”, informed John.
