Memorial

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S/Sgt Robert A. Keuchel attended St Joseph's and South High Schools as well as the University of Omaha.

The mission took place on 22 March 1945.

Statement of Capt Andrew F. Crane a crew member who survived:
"After the plane received direct hits, a heading of 100 degrees was established to make an emergency landing at a Russian air strip. Fighters attacked and eventually all crew members bailed out. It is believed that all crew members were fired upon while descending in their parachutes. I was fired upon twice by an enemy fighter. When I landed, I was strafed by a Me109. He missed me by 2 feet and a second time by 6 feet. He came over a third time but I managed to dive in a creek. I saw none of the boys from the moment I hit the ground. I then tried to reach a haystack. Spotted, I was fired upon three times. I threw up my hands and surrendered. Taken to quarters I was told the Russian lines were but 10 kilometers away. My co-pilot Paul Honke was brought in bleeding. He suffered four strafing attacks, two in the air and two on the ground."

Field investigations, conducted on 29 December 1947 and 20 September 1949, failed to locate the remains of the eight casualties or of the crash site. It was revealed that an identification tag belonging to crew member S/Sgt De Matteis was turned in to American authorities at Bremen by a German refugee. Attempts were made upon receipt of the identification tag to learn the whereabouts of the refugee whose address was unknown.

S/Sgt Keuchel was officially declared dead one day and one year after he was reported missing in action.

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency announced on 16 July 2025 the S/Sgt. Robert A. Keuchel has been accounted for.

The B-17G was reported to have crashed north of Breslau, Poland. Following the war, the American Graves Registration Command searched for and disinterred the remains of U.S. servicemen in Europe as part of the global effort to identify and recover fallen servicemen. However, the American Graves Registration Command investigations in the Soviet occupied zone of Europe, including Poland, were severely limited.

Between 2019 and 2024, DPAA partnered with Alta Archaeological Consulting to plan and conduct five excavations at the site where Keuchel’s aircraft crashed. During the excavations, teams led by Alta recovered possible remains, which were transferred to the DPAA Laboratory for further analysis. The laboratory analysis and total circumstantial evidence identified the remains as those of Keuchel.

Funeral arrangements are pending (information added January 2026).