It turns out that, unlike previous wars, the Vietnam War didnt produce many Unknowns. She took on the military, won, and brought him back for burial in his hometown of St. Louis. Whatever was known about the remains of the Vietnam Unknown had never been revealed. But in 1956, one small, seemingly innocent change to the formula of the Unknown would prove problematic: we began to add another set of unidentified remains for every subsequent war. Survivors, in addition to her daughter Patricia, include a son, George Blassie of St. Peters; two other daughters, Judy Cozad of Creve Coeur and Mary Hart of Florissant; and 11 grandchildren. Flying at a low altitude to drop napalm, he would have been propelled into the ground. I never dreamed Id never see Michael again., The Blassie siblings, 1961. The remains in the tomb are not even technically referred to as an unknown soldier. No one knows which service theyre from, so instead of soldier or sailor or marine, theyre simply referred to as the Unknown. In fact, anything that narrows the scope of who this person could be including where exactly they were found is purposely withheld from the public in order to make sure that they represent every possible service member. Jean Frances Adrian grew up in Jennings. Perhaps they should put up a new plaque at the memorial that talks about the fact that there may never again be an unknown soldier. You may not upload any more photos to this memorial, This photo was not uploaded because this memorial already has 20 photos, This photo was not uploaded because you have already uploaded 5 photos to this memorial, This photo was not uploaded because this memorial already has 30 photos, This photo was not uploaded because you have already uploaded 15 photos to this memorial. His remains were buried in Arlington National Cemetery's Tomb of The Unknowns as an unidentified soldier from the Vietnam War. If they had, they might have hung up on him. The remains were confirmed to be those of Air Force 1st Lt. Michael Blassie. Today he comes home.". No one knows how many remains from Vietnam and elsewhere were buried in the wrong graves because of these flawed identification procedures. By the time his mother found out where he was, his remains were entombed in the Tomb of the Unknowns in Washington. Captain Parnell wrapped the remains, and the other items found at the crash site, in plastic and held them overnight. Post-Dispatch file photo, Workers cover the Tomb of the Unknowns in Arlington Cemetery in Arlington, Va., on May 13, 1998, in anticipation of the exhumation of the remains of the Vietnam unknown. Secretary of Defense William Cohen was on hand for the somber burial. You are nearing the transfer limit for memorials managed by Find a Grave. There is 1 volunteer for this cemetery. And you didnt mention the shoes the specially designed shoes the sentries wear are pretty cool. It can represent all soldiers. There is a problem with your email/password. It is very austere and moving. In honor of the Coast Guard's birthday, we've put together a quiz on the service's history and traditions. well, that was simply too much to believe. He was constantly researching, protesting, and pressuring the Pentagon to resolve open cases. The remains were then sent to Travis Air Force Base on May 24 and arrived at Andrews Air Force Base the following day. . The city of An Loc was totally leveled it looked like Hiroshima, says Chris Calhoon who was stationed there as an Army Ranger. France, Romania, Italy everybody at the same time jumped on this idea. Year should not be greater than current year. Photo by Erik M. Lunsford elunsford@post-dispatch.com Jean Blassie lost. Updated: June 21, 2016 . Close this window, and upload the photo(s) again. Blassie was declared missing in action and presumed dead. Michael Blassie received an appointment to the Air Force and fell in love with flying immediately. Advances made since the early 1980s had made it possible to identify the remains, which consisted of only six bones -- far below the usual 80 percent of a corpse required for burial at Arlington. Dont let my viewpoint sully your experience. In order for the X-26 remains to be interred in the Tomb of the Unknown, Webb had to sign a statement confirming that they would never be identified. However, Vietnam veterans pressured Congress to designate an unknown, believing the action would give recognition to their service, sacrifice, and honor. But thanks to improved battlefield evacuation tactics, the Vietnam War produced only four sets of unidentified remains that could potentially go into the tomb. You need a Find a Grave account to continue. Id left school early that day, and I looked out the window when I heard a car door slam. Morphological approximation, worthless though it was, provided quick answers and a veneer of scientific validation. On Friday, Family and friends gathered to welcome his return at Scott Air Force Base, near Blassie's hometown of Florissant, Mo., a St. Louis suburb. Though discovered in South Vietnam at the crash site, along with personal effects and survival gear, the remains of US Air Force pilot 1st Lt. Michael Blassie got labeled Unknown. It took the hard work of an eccentric Vietnam veteran activist, an investigative reporter, and the Blassie family to cut through years of bureaucratic bungling, official stonewalling, and government deceit to rescue Blassie from the Tomb and bring him home. My father went to his grave in 1991 not knowing the rest of his sons story., Meanwhile, Patricia herself joined the Air Force. Talk to the Veterans Crisis Line now The body will be cremated and her remains buried at Calvary Cemetery with her parents and grandparents. Over the next month, enemy forces cinched the noose, pounding the city with artillery and attempting to starve out the population. The military is now in the process of using the DNA from the families of missing veterans to identify over 650 sets of unknown remains from the Korean War. or don't show this againI am good at figuring things out. Yesterday I read an article about three WW1 soldiers buried in Copenhagen: https://www.thelocal.dk/20190305/the-little-known-story-of-the-first-world-war-soldiers-buried-in-copenhagen. The date, location of the crash, bone fragments from the body and remnants of his flight suit and parachute led to the conclusion that it was Michael. She suffered a stroke in 2004 and recently was diagnosed with pneumonia, her family said Thursday. All Rights Reserved. George, the youngest son, said that being buried in the Tomb of the Unknowns was a great honor and that maybe the family should leave Michael there. The file that Vince discovered made it clear the the person who had been put in the tomb in 1984 had been far from unknown. On Memorial Day 1984, the remains of a soldier killed during the Vietnam War were laid to rest in the Tomb of the Unknown at Arlington National Cemetery. Verify and try again. Still, as hesitant as he was,Gonzales thought maybe there could be more to the story. Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot loses reelection bid Baracus on "The A-Team," Mr. T was a member of the biggest team of them all -- the U.S "I was the guy who makes you scrub the latrine, the guy who makes you make your bed, the guy who screams at you for being Copyright 2023 Military.com. Love each and every podcast . In 1998 the Tomb of the Unknown was opened and the remains of the Vietnam Unknownidentified as X-26were removed. He subsequently qualified as an A-37 Dragonfly pilot and served as a member of the 8th Special Operations Squadron, deployed to Southeast Asia. "He's still serving today because he now represents those that need to come home," she said. He must have been killed instantly since he did not transmit a distress call of any kind. Given the advance of DNA technology, there may never be another US Unknown. Instead of moving Michaels remains to the burial ground at Arlington, the family decided to have Michael re-interred at the Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery along the Mississippi River just south of the city. After 26 years, the family of Air Force Lt. Michael Blassie, buried the pilot Saturday, ending a painful mystery that began in 1972. This is a carousel with slides. Michael Blassie later received an appointment to the Air Force Academy. Your donations are vital to keeping us independent and strong! The email does not appear to be a valid email address. When Britain dedicated the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior in Westminster Abbey in 1920, it garnered a lot of attention. By 1972, when Michael was deployed, Americas military presence in Southeast Asia was shrinking rapidly. She worked until she was 82. "X-26" remained in Arlington with his unknown comrades, watched by the solemn Old Guard, until 1998, when new questions about Blassie's whereabouts surfaced. The nature of combat in Vietnam and advances in forensic medicine had made it difficult for officials to bury a Vietnam unknown. #inline-recirc-item--id-91b39784-8c88-11e2-b06b-024c619f5c3d, #right-rail-recirc-item--id-91b39784-8c88-11e2-b06b-024c619f5c3d { "This shrine was still distant from his house, the soil of Missouri, the banks of the Mississippi. Learn about how to make the most of a memorial. Scientists at CIL-HI estimated the deceaseds age to be between 26-33 years and height between 65.2-71.5 inches. The president meant to assure families of soldiers with MIA status that their loved ones would not be forgotten, but his words were prescient of the Vietnam unknown's fate. Blassie, 24, an Air Force Academy graduate and the oldest of the five children of a St. Louis meat cutter, was flying an A-37 when he was shot down over An Loc, about 60 miles north of Saigon in South Vietnam, on May 11, 1972. They had no way of knowing the remains so caringly committed to the Tomb were that of their son and brother. . A decade later, however, questions began to arise about the identity of this unknown soldier. Veteran Dispatch. East wind * around 10 mph. This is especially true for people like me that have no familial association with the military. But the military didnt tell anyone, officials later explained, because they said they couldnt be certain that it was he. (2006): Identification of Human Remains. Privacy Policy & Terms of Service. At flight school, Michael was assigned to fly a ground attack aircraft known as the A-37. Blassie's mother, three sisters and brother each carried small American flags during the service. Jean Blassie lost her son twice. Chuck Norris, U.S. military veteran, and martial arts superstar began honing his skills in Korea while serving in the Air Before he went on to fame as B.A. If you have questions, please contact [emailprotected]. Mourners are grateful for their extra effort. Please ensure you have given Find a Grave permission to access your location in your browser settings. Five months later, during a sweep of the area, a South Vietnamese Army patrol recovered a pelvis, an upper arm bone, and some ribs, as well as the remnants of a flight suit, a life raft, pieces of a parachute, and part of a USAF holster. From there, the remains and effects went to Camp Samae San, Thailand, where the US ran a search and recovery center. Please enter your email and password to sign in. Dubbed the super-tweet it was designed to fly low over its target. "We write no last chapters, we close no books," Reagan said. Serving as next-of-kid, President Ronald Reagan received the folded flag and made brief remarks. Translation on Find a Grave is an ongoing project. There, a plaque holds words from. The Air Force told the Blassie family in St. Louis all they knew: their son had been killed in action, but his remains could not be recovered since he went down in enemy-held territory. Michael Joseph Blassie, the oldest of five children of a St. Louis meat cutter, entered the Air Force Academy in 1966 and received his officer's commission in June 1970. Michael Blassie had become a cold statistic of war. That single set of remains was known only as X-26, but his actual name was Michael Blassie. Becoming a Find a Grave member is fast, easy and FREE. But instead of giving closure, the remains endured one of the most baffling episodes of misidentification in military history. During a tour of Vietnam, he served as a member of the 8th Special Operations Squadron. It is with great sadness that we announce the death of Joseph Michael Leo Findlan (Amelia, Ohio), who passed away on February 24, 2022, at the age of 71, leaving to mourn family and friends. After Blassie's family secured permission, the remains of Blassie were exhumed on May 14, 1998. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate, or jump to a slide with the slide dots. Include gps location with grave photos where possible. It represents all soldiers who made the ultimate sacrifice for the rest of us. We wanted the entire truth, but they couldnt tell us that., The official designation was KIABNRKilled in Action, Body not Recovered., My father served in Normandy during World War II and he never got over losing Michael, Patricia recalls. ). . Dubbed the "super-tweet . She stood strong, did what was right and led the family.. Theyre too upsetting. Mrs. When they came back, they handed Michael Blassies remains toCalhoon. Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device. Michaels plane had crashed deep in North Vietnamese held territory. This flower has been reported and will not be visible while under review. If he couldnt do it, Webb would be ordered to sign off on the burial. You can always change this later in your Account settings. Check out member benefits and perks . A simple process of elimination made clear that the remains had to be a small fixed-wing pilot like Michael. After his remains were identified by DNA testing in 1998, they were reburied at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery in St. Louis County, Missouri. #inline-recirc-item--id-91b39784-8c88-11e2-b06b-024c619f5c3d ~ .item:nth-child(5) { And so it would have remained if a rookie CBS reporter named Vince Gonzalez hadnt run across Sampleys article about Blassie on the Internet. That Michael might be in the Tomb of the Unknown . Calhoon assumed that Michaels remains would be returning to his family. CDC warns drug-resistant stomach bug a "serious public health threat" Save to an Ancestry Tree, a virtual cemetery, your clipboard for pasting or Print. Institute staff later reported their surprise when they opened the casket to retrieve the DNA and saw the crash-site artifacts Major Johnie Webb had enclosed with the remains back in 1984. The test results showed a match with DNA samples from Jean Blassie and her oldest daughter. It may be that forensic science has reached the point where there will be no other unknowns in any war. The slide dots ultimate sacrifice for the somber burial that, unlike previous wars, Blassie! Family secured permission, the remains were confirmed to be a small fixed-wing pilot like Michael remains Blassie... Held territory on the service 's history and traditions his family declared missing in action and presumed dead Webb... Had to be a valid email address Blassie received an appointment to the story now represents those that to! 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