Fallen Airmen Laid To Rest After 38 Years
(June 21, 2010) |
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| | ARLINGTON, Va., June 18, 2010 – Unidentified remains of 14
fallen Air Force AC-130 gunship crewmembers were laid to
rest at Arlington National Cemetery here yesterday, nearly
40 years after their aircraft was shot down over southern
Laos. |
An Air Force honor guard
carries a casket holding unidentified remains
during a burial service at Arlington National
Cemetery, June 17, 2010. The ceremony honored 14
airmen who were killed in March 1972 when their
aircraft was shot down over southern Laos. |
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Lt. Col. Henry P. Brauner, Lt. Col. Richard
Castillo, Lt. Col. Irving B. Ramsower II, Lt.
Col. Howard D. Stephenson, Maj. Curtis D.
Miller, Maj. Barclay B. Young, Capt. Richard C.
Halpin, Capt. Charles J. Wanzel III, Chief
Master Sgt. Edwin J. Pearce, Senior Master Sgt.
James K. Caniford, Senior Master Sgt. Robert E.
Simmons, Senior Master Sgt. Edward D. Smith Jr.,
Master Sgt. Merlyn L. Paulson and Master Sgt.
William A. Todd were honored in a group burial
with full military honors in the cemetery's
Section 60.
The crew was killed in action March 29, 1972, in
the midst of the Vietnam War.
Air Force Lt. Gen. Mark D. Shackelford presented
an American flag to the families. Air Force
Chaplain (Capt.) |
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Anthony Wade and Rev. Martin McGill presided
over the service. |
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Full military honors included a flag-draped casket and carrying team, a firing
party, a band and bugler, a horse-drawn caisson and escorts from the Air Force
Honor Guard. All 14 names will be included on the headstone. Representatives
from the families of 13 of the airmen attended the ceremony. Several members of
Rolling Thunder, an advocacy group for the return of all prisoners of war and
those missing in action, also attended the service. |
Families observe as an Air
Force honor guard folds the flag that draped a
casket containing unidentified remains during a
burial service at Arlington National Cemetery,
June 17, 2010. The ceremony honored 14 airmen
who were killed in March 1972 when their
aircraft was shot down over southern Laos. |
|
"Individual remains were identified and returned
to each of the family members with the exception
of Lt. Col. Brauner's, who was included in the
group remains buried Thursday," Larry Greer, a
spokesman for the Defense POW/Missing Personnel
Office, said in an interview today with American
Forces Press Service.
Young and Caniford were buried here individually
in 2008, said Kaitlin Horst, a spokeswoman for
the cemetery.Forensic anthropologists and
scientists from the Defense Department are
confident all 14 airmen were involved in the
crash, Greer said. The scientists used
identification tools, circumstantial evidence
and DNA tests to match the crewmembers' remains
with their |
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families, Greer said. Scientists also used
dental comparisons to identify remains. |
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“All of these men have been accounted for, and the families have accepted the
identification,” Greer said. “These final, full-honor services are to recognize
the sacrifices that these men made and their families made, and all of us
involved in this mission feel it an honor to bring closure to these families.”
The crew's plane was shot down by a surface-to-air missile during an armed
reconnaissance mission. Search and rescue efforts were hindered because of heavy
enemy activity in the area and were stopped after only a few days, Greer said.
The first remains were recovered in 1986 by a joint U.S.-Laos team, Greer said.
Recovered items included two identification tags, life support equipment and
aircraft wreckage, he added.
Between 1986 and 1998, nine members of the aircrew were positively identified.
Follow-on surveys and excavations in 2005 and 2006 found more remains, personal
effects and other equipment, he said.
The remains of more than 900 servicemembers killed in the Vietnam War have been
returned to their families since 1972. More than 1,700 remain unaccounted-for.
In the past year, the Joint Prisoners of War and Missing in Action Accounting
Command has accounted for 98 servicemembers missing from the Korean War, Vietnam
War and World War II. More than 80,000 servicemembers from the three wars remain
unaccounted-for. Nearly 2,000 from the same wars have been accounted for and
returned to their families. | |
Article and
photos by
Army SFC Michael J. Carden
American Forces Press Service
Copyright 2010
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