WWII Sailor Killed in Pearl Harbor Attack Honored at PIT

It’s been nearly 83 years since Walter Schleiter was killed during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor while serving aboard the USS Oklahoma.

On Friday, his remains — recently positively identified by the Department of Defense — finally made it back it back to the state in which he was born.

Arriving on an American Airlines flight from Hawaii to Dallas and then to Pittsburgh, Schleiter’s flag-draped casket was honored by Navy, USO and airline personnel, Pittsburgh International Airport leadership, firefighters and other staff as well as Allegheny County Police.

Those in uniform saluted while civilians placed their hands over their hearts as a Navy honor guard met the plane on the apron as it pulled into the gate. The honor guard later carried the casket into a waiting hearse. Patriot Guard Riders stood watch and saluted with large American flags lined next to the plane as a welcome home.

Schleiter will be buried April 11, 2024, at the National Cemetery of the Alleghenies as a final resting place.

Pittsburgh International Airport helps coordinate the arrival of fallen service members with the airline, the military and the USO among other organizations. Brittany Long, Pittsburgh center operations manager for the USO, said all parties involved work as a team to ensure arrivals are done honorably.

“It’s important all across the board that this is done in an honorable way,” Long said. “The service member who gave their life deserves to come home to an honorable welcome.”

 

Identification breakthrough

Schleiter was born in Freedom, Pennsylvania, and grew up in Massillon, Ohio, before he enlisted in the Navy in August 1940. On the morning of Dec. 7, 1941, he was assigned to the Oklahoma, which was moored at Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, when the