Kellett joined the Army in 1940 and was assigned to the Army Air Corps in the Philippines as a member of the 17th Pursuit Squadron, 24th Pursuit Group. He was captured by Japanese forces in 1942 and was among some 76,000 U.S. and Filipino soldiers who were forced to join the grueling Bataan death march across the self-named peninsula, according to Kellett’s obituary. He marched about 65 miles (105 kilometers) over six days.
Eventually he was imprisoned at the Cabanatuan POW camp. Camp records indicate Kellett died July 19, 1942, at age 22. Authorities believe he died from malaria and dysentery.
After the war, his body was recovered and transported to Manila American Cemetery where he was buried as “unknown†remains. His remains were identified in July, Defense POW/MIA Accounting said.
Corporal Kellett was probably one of the ground crew that maintained and repaired aircraft. His squadron, the 17th, flew P-40Es, as did most squadrons in the Group. However, one squadron flew P-40Bs, and another flew obsolete Seversky P-35s. Cut off from the States (= spare parts and replacement aircraft), the Group's squadrons did what they could until reduced by attrition. In addition to being unable to dogfight Mitsubishi A6Ms and Nakajima Ki-43s, the Group was hampered by lack of radar and poor communications (which made finding Japanese attack formations difficult and haphazard).
