by Marilyn Grote Officially, 1,973 Americans are still missing and unaccounted for from the Vietnam War, though 459 were at sea/over water losses (officially): Vietnam - 1,481 (North, 527; South, 954); Laos - 417; Cambodia - 67; Peoples Republic of China territorial waters - 8. Keep in mind that these numbers do not include civilians and are official numbers from the Department of Defense.
May 29, 2001 - Remains believed to be those of three American soldiers, missing in action from the Korean War, will be repatriated in formal ceremonies at Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii, on Wednesday, May 30, at 9 a.m., Hawaii Time.
May 29, 2001 - Fifty years after losing her father to war on the Korean peninsula, Pat Dunton can finally do more than just imagine his fate. She can bury him. For all those years, she and her family waited and wondered: Did he die when his Air Force B-29 bomber was shot down? Did he survive, only to perish in a POW camp? What became of his remains? Now, this Memorial Day, answers. With the help of DNA samples, military forensics specialists have concluded that remains received from the North Korean government in 1993 are those of Air Force Lt. James Swayne Wilson Jr., the navigator on a B-29 shot down by enemy fighters near the Yalu River on April 12, 1951.
June 4, 2001 - President Bush formally certified to Congress that Vietnam is "fully cooperating in good faith" to resolve the POW/MIA issue, the identical language used earlier by President Clinton.
June 6, 2001 - Remains believed to be those of the six-man crew of a World War II bomber have been located in Tunisia and will be repatriated today in ceremonies in Tunis. The aircraft wreckage was discovered in November 2000 during a dredging operation of Lake Tunis, near the capital city of Tunis. The aircraft was under approximately six feet of silt and mud. The government of Tunisia halted the dredging operation and contacted U.S. authorities. The U.S. Army's Central Identification Laboratory, Hawaii (CILHI), mounted underwater excavations in November and January, recovering remains, personal effects and aircraft debris. U.S. Navy specialists in underwater salvage operations and unexploded ordnance assisted the CILHI team. The teams received the full support of the Tunisian government during all phases of the recovery work.
June 12, 2001 - The California National Guard has found yet another World War II veteran who was never formally recognized for his heroism in World War II. Maj. Gen. Daniel Gibson, California National Guard, will bestow the Distinguished Flying Cross upon retired Sgt. Anson M. Riley at 1:00 p.m., June 14, at the Stockton Army Aviation Support Facility, 2000 Stimson Road, Stockton, Calif. Riley, who is currently fighting cancer, was the ball turret gunner in the aircraft "Destiny's Child" when the plane was shot down over Leipzig, Germany in 1944. Riley was a prisoner of war until June 6, 1945 when the war ended.
June 12, 2001 - It was announced that the remains of a Navy Seaman, listed as KIA/BNR on June 16, 1968, were recently identified and returned to his family for burial. The remains were jointly recovered October 6, 1993.
June 14, 2001 - America's Longest Candlelight Vigil and Freedom Ride combined with Freedom Flight to make this annual event even bigger than before. Hesky Park in Meredith New Hampshire has held a candlelight vigi for our POW/MIAs every Thursday evening for the last 12 years. Every year in mid-June for the last 9 years, "Freedom Ride" joins the vigil by hosting a motorcycle run to conclude at Hesky Park. This year, the folks from Minnesota sent one of their Hot Air Balloons to spread the word that we will not forget our abandoned. You can view the event from here!
June 20, 2001 - The remains of six Americans previously missing and unaccounted for from the Vietnam War have been identified and are being returned to their families. Both jointly recovered and turned over by remains traders to Vietnamese officials, the remains of these six Americans were repatriated between 1988 and 1993, one from North Vietnam and the other five from South Vietnam. Three were US MA U.S. Air Force pilot and a Marine Corps aerial observer missing in action from the Vietnam War has been identified and is being returned to their families. Identified were David W. Morrill and Maxim C. Parker, both USMC, were jointly recovered in South Vietnam June 9, 1993. The remains of Victor J. Apodaca, Jr., USAF, were repatriated April 27, 1989. The November 14, 1991 joint recovery of the remains of Harry A. Amesbury, Jr., USAF, brought an accepted identification. And, the remains ofCol. Harley B. Pyles, USAF, and Col. Winfield Wade Sisson, USMC, were jointly recovered in South Vietnam on April 8, 1993.
June 20, 2001 - At 1000 hrs, 20 June, 2001, beneath a clear Texas sky the remains of CWO-4 Charles "Pappy" Dietch were laid to rest at Restland Cemetary, Dallas, Texas. The services, held at graveside, was both a fitting statement for someone of Pappy's exemplary service to country as well as one that brought closure to the family.
June 21 - 23, 2001 - Families of POW/MIAs, Veterans and Activists descended on Crystal City, Virginia for their annual meetings. The National League of Families of American Prisoners and Missing in Southeast Asia held their 32nd annual meeting at the Doubletree Hotel in Crystal City. The more radical National Alliance of Families for the Return of America's Missing Servicemen held their 12th annual forum at the Crown Plaza Hotel in Crystal City. The families, veterans and activists attended both meetings and both organizations were briefed by Department of Defense, the Pentagon and Congressional staffers. We have a report from the Alliance's meeting.
June 22, 2001 - A prisoner from the 1950-53 Korean War was among 12 new defectors from North Korea to arrive in the South, intelligence officials said Friday. The National Intelligence Service (NIS) said Lee Young-Sok, 69, had been forced to work as a coal miner in the communist North after being released from a prisoner of war camp. Twenty former prisoners of war have now managed to get back to the South since 1994, according to the authorities.
June 22, 2001 - For the family of Winfield Wade Sisson of Berkeley, the painful mystery of the Marine captain's disappearance in Vietnam more than three decades is finally resolved. Two months ago, the family learned the truth; the 28-year-old pilot was killed when his plane crashed into a mountain in October 1965. Pentagon officials released the identification this week.
June 22, 2001 - Clark County pilot's remains being returned to family A U.S. Air Force pilot from Clark County and a Marine Corps aerial observer from California - missing in action from the Vietnam War - have been identified and are being returned to their families. The Department of Defense, in a release issued Tuesday, identified the men as Air Force Col. Harley B. Pyles of Enon and Marine Col. Winfield W. Sisson of Berkeley.
In mid-July, BG Harry Axson will turnover command of JTF-FA to Air Force BG Steven Redmann, the first time that the Air Force has commanded the organization. Technical talks were held in Hanoi June 14-15th in preparation for joint field activities that begin in early July.
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