Searching for Marge: WWII plane named in honor of ace pilot's girlfriend that crashed in Papa New Guinea jungle in 1944 after he shot down 40 Japanese enemy aircraft

The hunt is on for a plane flown by a legendary WWII hero who became a national celebrity after his very public declaration of love for his then girlfriend.

Ace pilot Richard Bong, a farm boy from Wisconsin, is credited with shooting down 40 Japanese aircraft during World War II - more than any other American pilot - and was awarded the Medal of Honor.

But he is perhaps even more well known for plastering a huge photograph of his girlfriend Marjorie Vattendahl on the side of his Lockheed P-38 Lightning fighter plane - which he nicknamed 'Marge' in her honor. 

The plane vanished in March 1944 when it went into engine failure over Papua New Guinea. The pilot flying the jet at the time, Thomas Malone, survived but the aircraft along with Marge's picture disappeared into the jungle never to be seen again. 

The celebrity couple later married but Bong tragically died before the end of the war, leaving his new wife devastated.  

Now, a museum and historical preservation group have teamed up in a bid to recover the wreckage and bring missing Marge home. 

Ace pilot Richard Bong flew a plane called 'Marge,' named after his then-girlfriend Marjorie Vattendahl

He attached the photo of Vattendahl onto the plane shortly before it went into engine failure over Papua New Guinea in March 1944

Bong married Vattendahl in front of 1,200 guests and the international press in February 1945

Sadly, the pilot died six months later after he was forced to eject from a P-80 jet at a low altitude

Bong was born to a Swedish immigrant father and an American-born mother in 1920.

The first of nine children, the ace pilot was raised on farmland in Poplar, Wisconsin.

He learned how to drive farm machinery at an early age and enjoyed playing sports, hunting and fishing.

Bong and Vattendahl met in 1943 at Superior Teachers College while he was on home leave to crown the school's new homecoming king.

The two were on stage together during the crowning and went on their first date a few days later.

Like Bong, Vattendahl gained fame for her boyfriend plastering her graduation photo on his airplane and the pilot described her as a woman who 'looks swell, and a hell of a lot better than these naked women painted on most of the airplanes,' the LA Times reported in 2003.

Bong married Vattendahl in front of 1,200 guests and the international press in February 1945.

But the pilot died just six months later after he was forced to eject from a P-80 jet at a low altitude.

'It was such a traumatic experience for her,' said the historical center's director Christabel Grant. 

Vattendahl spent her final years living at the Bong family farm, and her ashes were buried next to the World War II hero after her death in 2003

The trip to Papua New Guinea to find 'Marge' will cost around $63,000

The hunt for the plane is expected to take a month

The Richard I. Bong Veterans Historical Center and the non-profit Pacific Wrecks announced the search for Bong's plane last week. 

Justin Taylan, founder of Pacific Wrecks, will lead the expedition and plans to leave for Papua New Guinea in May.

According to Minnesota Public Radio (MPR), Taylan believes the trip could take almost a month and cost around $63,000.

Taylan told MPR he is sure he'll find the wreckage, but doesn't know if there will be enough to identify the plane.

'We’ll be taking pictures, video, fly a drone over the site and do a full site survey,' said Taylan.

'Hopefully we’ll be able to find the ultimate proof, which will be a serial number from the airplane that says this airplane is Marge.'

Jerry Fechtelkotter, Richard Bong's sister, told Northern News Now their family is excited about the expedition.

'It would be nice to display some of the parts here in the museum if we can find those,' Bong's nephew Keith Fechtelkotter added.

 Bong married Vattendahl in front of 1,200 guests and the international press in February 1945

Marjorie marred Murray Drucker in the 1950s and gave birth to two children after Bong's death. She died in 2003 and her ashes are currently buried next to the fallen ace pilot

After Bong's death, Vattendahl married Murray Drucker in the 1950s and became a model and a publisher at the Boxer Review.

She later spoke at aviation and veterans conventions and was 'delighted' to learn that a P-38 aircraft with a picture that looked like her had become a collectors item.

She spent her final years living at the Bong family farm, and her ashes were buried next to the World War II hero after her death in 2003.

Daily Mail has reached out to the Richard I. Bong Veterans Historical Center and Pacific Wrecks for comment.