CAPT Scott Speicher - KIA

[Uncle Fester]

FWIW, the Hornet outside Schools Command has recently refurbished and repainted in the markings of CAPT Speicher's Sunliner jet the night he went down.

 

[Ace_Austin]

FWIW, the Hornet outside Schools Command has recently refurbished and repainted in the markings of CAPT Speicher's Sunliner jet the night he went down.

Outstanding, its good to see he finally gets to come home.

 

[Lobster]

huge duhh

 

[DangerousDan]

Wow. Finally. I met a cadaver dog and his handler told me they just got back from Iraq looking for CAPT Speicher this past friday night. He didn't say much else, and I didn't ask, but it's good to hear.

Yeah I got told by the chief of PRD here right after DOD had confirmed his identity.

 

[DangerousDan]

FWIW, the Hornet outside Schools Command has recently refurbished and repainted in the markings of CAPT Speicher's Sunliner jet the night he went down.

I see the tophatters paint scheme didnt last very long. I wonder if they left the names on the inside of the main gear doors?

 

[Bevo16]

Yeah I got told by the chief of PRD here right after DOD had confirmed his identity.

Do me a favor and go slap that guy in the mouth. Better yet, go tell his boss that he can't honor his confidentialty agreement and he needs to find a different place to work. If you are not comfortable with that, send me his name and I'll take care of it.

Think about it...Is this the way you want your wife or mother to be notified? People need to follow the rules, and keep their mouths shut about information like this until the family has been notified. Then, 24 hours later, the news hits the street.

Same goes for anyone else who is putting the word out before the family finds out. It sounds like a bunch of people need a cup of ziplip.

A big part of honoring the man is not passing around rumors like a bunch of women at the beauty parlor. Just because this latest one turned out to be right does not make giving out the information acceptable. There have been plenty of instances over the past 18 years where this family has been told something or heard something through back channels only to have it fizzle out to nothing. When it comes to casualties, if you are not part of the reporting/notification process, you need to see your way out of the rumor mill and insure that your people do the same.

 

[nzachman]

http://www.fox4kc.com/wdaf-remembering-speicher-story-8309,0,5827080.story

Just learned about this but Capt. Speicher was a CAP Cadet before joining the Navy. That is motivation right there.

 

[MasterBates]

One one hand, I would have preferred the "Capt Speicher walks out of Iranian/Syrian prison" ending, but at least this way the family knows what happened, he gets a proper burial at home and it proves that there are decent people in that corner of the world. (the Bedouins who gave him a burial)

 

[insanebikerboy]

One one hand, I would have preferred the "Capt Speicher walks out of Iranian/Syrian prison" ending,

I hope this doesn't come across wrong in this thread, but could you imagine the shit-show/firestorm that would've occurred if that would've been the scenario? Sheesh.

 

[Rubiks06]

This also means he didn't suffer in said prison for 19 years.

 

[HeyJoe]

Latest DoD Release

Speicher Search Details Announced


The Navy announced today additional details regarding the recent discovery of the remains of Navy Capt. Michael "Scott" Speicher in Iraq. Speicher was shot down flying a combat mission in an F/A-18 Hornet over west-central Iraq on Jan. 17, 1991, during Operation Desert Storm.

Acting in part on information provided by an Iraqi citizen in early July, Multi National Force ? West's (MNF-W) personnel recovery team went to a location in the desert which was believed to be the crash site of Speicher's jet. The Iraqi, a Bedouin, was 11 years old at the time of the crash and did not have direct knowledge of where Speicher was buried, but knew of other Bedouins who did. He willingly provided his information during general discussion with MNF-W personnel and stated he was unaware of the U.S. government's interest in this case until queried by U.S. investigators in July 2009.

The Iraqi citizens led MNF-W's personnel recovery team to the area they believed Speicher was buried. The area where the remains were recovered was located approximately 100 kilometers west of Ramadi, in Anbar province. There were two sites that teams searched. One site was next to the downed aircraft that was discovered in 1993 and the other site was approximately two kilometers away. The second site was where Speicher's remains were recovered.

The recovery personnel searched two sites from July 22-29. The personnel recovery team consisted of approximately 150 people, mostly Marines and other forces under MNF-W.

The recovered remains include bones and multiple skeletal fragments. Based on visual examination of the remains and dental records at the site, a preliminary assessment was reached that the remains were that of Speicher. After searching the site another day, no further remains were recovered.

On July 30, the remains were turned over from the recovery team to MNF-W mortuary affairs at Al Asad. The remains were then transported to Dover Port Mortuary at Dover Air Force Base, Del. They were examined by the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology's (AFIP) Armed Forces medical examiner who positively identified them as those of Speicher on Aug. 1.

Positive identification by AFIP was made by comparing Speicher's dental records with the jawbone recovered at the site. The teeth were a match, both visually and radiographically. AFIP's DNA Lab in Rockville, Md., confirmed the remains to be Speicher on Aug. 2 via DNA comparison tests of the remains by comparing them to DNA reference samples previously provided by family members.

 

[Gainesy]

it proves that there are decent people in that corner of the world. (the Bedouins who gave him a burial)

Hear, Hear. A Noble people who treated him as they would their own.

 

[HeyJoe]

Images from the final and successful recovery effort

090728-M-0000X-501 ANBAR PROVINCE, Iraq (July 28, 2009) Marines from Task Force Personnel Recovery (TF MP) of Multi-National Force-West conduct recovery efforts at the crash site of U.S. Navy Capt. Michael Scott Speicher, whose F/A-18 was shot down over Anbar province, Iraq, Jan. 17, 1991. (U.S. Marine Corps Photo/Released)

 

[scoolbubba]

It's reassuring to know that if the worst day in our life ever comes, someone's going to be coming to get us, one way or another.

 

[Jim123]

It's reassuring to know that if the worst day in our life ever comes, someone's going to be coming to get us, one way or another.

True- coincidentally, this similar story was in the news today- for the serviceman in this story it took almost 55 years and it says there are still 78,000 people waiting their turn, but sooner or later the system works:

Split by war, united at last: Family of WWII soldier traced through long-lost dog tags
http://blog.al.com/live/2009/08/split_by_war_united_at_last_fa.html