(CNN) -- A Kentucky service member who was missing in action during the Korean War has been identified, a Defense Department agency said on Wednesday.
The Defense Prisoner of War-Missing Personnel Office said the remains of U.S. Army Sgt. Charles P. Whitler of Cloverport, Kentucky, were identified and returned to his family. He will be buried with full military honors.
Maj. Carie Parker, spokeswoman for the office, said about 85 missing service members have been identified every year from past conflicts -- World War I up through Cold War conflicts. More than 8,000 service members remain missing from the Korea War.
Whitler had been assigned to 3rd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment in Novermber 1950 when troops were "occupying a defensive position near the town of Unsan by the Kuryong River known as the 'Camel's Head'".
Enemy forces attacked U.S. troops, and Whitler's unit "was involved in fighting which devolved into hand-to-hand combat around the 3rd Battalion's command post".
CNN
