SALT LAKE CITY — Eighty-one years after he vanished during a mission in World War II, U.S. Navy Ensign Howard A. Holding has finally been laid to rest in his hometown of Salt Lake City, bringing long-awaited closure to generations of his family.

Holding was just 22 years old when his F6F-3 Hellcat fighter plane went down near Yap Island in the western Pacific in September 1944. For decades, his remains were unaccounted for — until researchers traced them to an unknown grave at the American Cemetery in the Philippines.

Honoring a long-lost hero

On a clear October afternoon, family, military personnel, and local residents gathered at the Salt Lake City Cemetery to finally welcome Holding home. The ceremony included full military honors, an honor guard of sailors, a 21-gun salute, and the presentation of the American flag to Holding’s niece, Terri Trick.

“He was a graduate of the University of Utah and East High School,” Trick said during the service. “Howard loved music. He was a talented and well-known musician here in Salt Lake before he enlisted.”

Family members also recalled the anguish Holding’s mother endured after learning of his death.

“As she heard the news, she fainted,” one relative said. “After she recovered, one of her hands shook… for the rest of her life.”

The mission that claimed his life

According to naval records, on September 6, 1944, Holding was part of a 15-plane fighter sweep launched from the USS Enterprise targeting enemy positions near Yap Town. His aircraft collided midair or was struck by anti-aircraft fire during a dive — eyewitnesses later reported both planes descending in flames.

No wreckage or parachutes were found at the time, and Holding was declared Missing in Action.

Rediscovered after eight decades

Holding’s remains were identified thanks to the tireless efforts of Patrick Ranfranz, founder of the Missing Aircrew Project, a volunteer initiative dedicated to locating U.S. service members still missing from World War II air missions.

“I feel honored to have played a part in bringing Howard home,” Ranfranz said.

Ranfranz’s search began in 2005 while investigating the death of his own uncle, also lost over Yap Island. Over the years, his work connected him to Holding’s family and eventually led to the discovery that Holding’s remains were buried under an “unknown” marker in the Philippines.

“Fate has made it my mission to help find these men,” Ranfranz said.

A final homecoming

As Holding’s casket was lowered into the earth — draped in the flag he fought for — his family expressed both sorrow and relief.

“We hope you are feeling right now the same peace and joy that we are feeling with this closure,” a relative said, standing before his grave.

After 81 years of uncertainty, Ensign Howard A. Holding is finally home — honored, remembered, and laid to rest in the city where his story began.