Back To The Hump Project
What Is the “Back to the Hump” Project?
Back to the Hump is a long-term humanitarian initiative organized by The Hump Legacy Inc.
Its mission is to organize expedition teams into the legendary Hump region of the World War II China-Burma-India (CBI) Theater in search of airmen who remain missing to this day, and to help provide answers for families who have waited for more than eighty years.
What Is the Hump?
“The Hump” refers to the rugged mountainous region beneath the World War II air route connecting India and China.
Named for its camelback-like profile, the region is characterized by extreme terrain, with elevations ranging from just a few dozen meters to over 7,000 meters and dramatic vertical relief. Violent winds, torrential rains, low temperatures, high humidity, floods, landslides, and mudflows create exceptionally challenging conditions for both aviation and ground expeditions.
What Was the Hump Air Route?
During World War II, after China's land supply routes were gradually cut off, the Allies established an air supply route from India across the Himalayas into China to deliver personnel and vital supplies.
Hump airlift operations began in May 1942 and continued until September 1945, becoming one of the largest and most demanding air transport operations of the war.
The Story of the Hump Route
Thousands of pilots and crew members served on the Hump route. More than 600 aircraft of various types crashed or disappeared in the region, and nearly 2,000 American and Allied airmen lost their lives in the mountains beneath the route. A large number of them are still officially listed as missing.
By the end of the war, aircraft wreckage lay scattered along this approximately 800-kilometer corridor. On clear days, pilots could reportedly navigate by following the sunlight reflected from aluminum debris below.
Time magazine once referred to this path as: “The Aluminum Trail.”
Progress of the Back to the Hump Project
Through the combined efforts of explorers, historians, archaeologists, and identification specialists from multiple countries, the Back to the Hump Project has identified and documented a number of previously unrecorded World War II aircraft wreck sites.
New discoveries continue to emerge. Information gathered through these efforts is submitted to relevant authorities for historical research and to help families of the missing obtain additional information.
The Future of the Back to the Hump Project
Looking ahead, the project will continue to collaborate with explorers, archaeologists, historians, and researchers from around the world in the search for airmen who went missing during World War II.
As the project develops, related research may gradually expand beyond the Hump region to Oceania, Europe, Africa, and the Americas.
The Hump Legacy Inc. is responsible for coordinating expeditions, historical research, and wreckage identification efforts.
The following footage documents actual field operations conducted as part of the Back to the Hump Project.
All discoveries are used solely for historical research and to assist families in confirming information.
This project is non-commercial. All work is conducted in accordance with applicable laws and with respect for local communities and historical sites.
For us, meaningful outdoor experiences are about more than mountains and landscapes. They are also about memory, history, and the connections between people across generations.
This belief lies at the heart of everything we do.
Make The Outdoors More Meaningful.
B-25 aircraft debris
B-25 aircraft debris
NUMBER：TFM003
AIRCRAFT TYPE：B-25
DISCOVERY AREA: Yunnan Province, China
CREW：To be confirmed
BRIEFING：The aircraft was pursued by Japanese fighter planes and hit in the fuselage. Before crashing, the pilot tried to steer the plane away from the village below and then bailed out. Their whereabouts are unknown.
DISCOVERY DATE：In 2024, the Fourteen Mountains expedition team precisely located the crash site of this aircraft.
Potez 25 aircraft debris
Potez 25 aircraft debris
Potez 25 aircraft debris
NUMBER：TFM004
AIRCRAFT TYPE：POTEZ-25
DISCOVERY AREA: The China-Vietnam border in Yunnan Province, China.
CREW：Lt Coquard
BRIEFING：On March 15, 1945, Lt Coquard of the French Air Force was requested to fly from Son La (Tonkin) to Mongtseu (Mengzi, China), to send Major Edwin J. Witzenburger back to his base at Mengzi. Major Edwin was a USAAF fighter pilot shot down by the Japanese and who evaded capture to be rescued by French ground forces. The flight was roughly 230 kms long, although it was made difficult by adverse weather conditions, was successfully completed. Several days later, on March 21,1945, Lt Coquard took off for the return trip, never to be seen again.
Lt Coquard full information : COQUARD Hubert, Marcel, André, born on Feb 18, 1920, French Air Force Academy, class of 1938, pilot license No. 28501 on Dec 1, 1939
DISCOVERY DATE：In 2024, The Fourteen Mountains expedition team precisely located the crash site of this aircraft.
B-24 aircraft debris
NUMBER：TFM005
AIRCRAFT TYPE：B-24
DISCOVERY AREA:Yunnan Province, China
CREW: 10 members
BRIEFING：On May 25, 1944, the aircraft was on a mission to bomb Japanese warships on Hainan Island and went missing thereafter.
DISCOVERY DATE：In 2024, the Fourteen Mountains expedition team precisely located the crash site of this aircraft.
C-47 aircraft debris
NUMBER：TFM008
AIRCRAFT TYPE：C-47
DISCOVERY AREA：Yunnan Province, China
CREW：To be confirmed
DISCOVERY DATE：In the spring of 2025, The Fourteen Mountains expedition team precisely located the crash site of this aircraft.
P-51 aircraft debris
NUMBER：TFM009
AIRCRAFT TYPE：P-51
DISCOVERY AREA：Yunnan Province, China
CREW：To be confirmed
DISCOVERY DATE：In the spring of 2025, The Fourteen Mountains expedition team precisely located the crash site of this aircraft.
NUMBER：TFM014
AIRCRAFT TYPE：B-25
DISCOVERY AREA：Yunnan Province, China
CREW：To be confirmed
DISCOVERY DATE：In 2025, the Fourteen Mountains expedition team precisely located the crash site of this aircraft.
B-25 aircraft debris
B-25 aircraft debris
B-25 aircraft debris
NUMBER：TFM024
AIRCRAFT TYPE：B-25C/D
DISCOVERY AREA：Yunnan Province, China
CREW：To be confirmed
DISCOVERY DATE：In 2025, the Fourteen Mountains expedition team precisely located the crash site of this aircraft.
B-24 aircraft debris
Figure 1 shows a Japanese 7.7 mm bullet. The tip of the projectile has a hole drilled through it, suggesting it may have been a decorative item used by a crew member for hanging. The semicircular name tag in Figure 4 is from Italy and may indicate that a crew member once served in Italy. All of the above remains speculative, so the story is still undergoing further verification.
NUMBER：TFM027
AIRCRAFT TYPE：B-24
DISCOVERY AREA：Yunnan Province, China
CREW：To be confirmed
DISCOVERY DATE：In 2025, the Fourteen Mountains expedition team precisely located the crash site of this aircraft.
The following are discoveries made in India by The Fourteen Mountains search team, led by renowned Hump expert Clayton Kuhles.
B-24J aircraft debris
NUMBER：TFM001
AIRCRAFT TYPE：B-24J
DISCOVERY AREA：Arunachal Pradesh, India
CREW：To be confirmed
DISCOVERY DATE：In 2023, the Fourteen Mountains expedition team precisely located the crash site of this aircraft.
C-46A aircraft debris
NUMBER：TFM002
AIRCRAFT TYPE：C-46A
DISCOVERY AREA：Arunachal Pradesh, India
CREW：To be confirmed
DISCOVERY DATE：In 2023, the Fourteen Mountains expedition team precisely located the crash site of this aircraft.
Expedition members of The Aluminum Trail discovered the wreckage of a crashed plane in India.
The Aluminum Trail expedition held a memorial ceremony with incense at the site of the plane crash in India.
The Aluminum Trail expedition camping in the primeval forest.
The Aluminum Trail expedition analyzing the crash site along the Hump air route.
A group photo of The Aluminum Trail expedition with the indigenous tribe before entering the Hump region.
Below is a memorial ceremony held by The Fourteen Mountains team on May 25, 2025, for the B-24 “Pokey” crew who went missing on May 25, 1944.
The aircraft was discovered in the winter of 2024 by The Fourteen Mountains’ China search team, eighty years after it disappeared.
In the winter of 2024, The Fourteen Mountains China search team held a memorial ceremony at a newly discovered B-25 crash site.
