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Re: Laotian Remains Return

From: POW-MIA InterNetwork

Date: February 15, 2003

"POW Remembers His Own Return as Caskets Arrive From Laos

By Jaymes Song Associated Press Writer

HICKAM AIR FORCE BASE, Hawaii (AP) - The return of the remains of American servicemen killed in Vietnam reminded retired Air Force Maj. Steve Long of his own arrival in Hawaii after years as a prisoner of war.

"The only difference was when we got on the bus, we were alive," said Long, who was among 30 POWs attending ceremonies at Hickam Air Force Base on Friday.

He watched as two flag-draped caskets were unloaded from an Air Force C-130 cargo plane and put aboard a bus that took them to the nearby Central Identification Laboratory Hawaii.

Thirty years ago this week, more than 600 freed Americans were ferried aboard U.S. planes from North Vietnam to the Philippines, and then Honolulu, on their way home after years of captivity. Several are in Honolulu to commemorate the anniversary.

A joint-service color guard and hundreds of active military personnel joined the former POWs in honoring the remains of Americans found in Laos and remembering other fallen soldiers from the war.

As with the men who may be among those recovered, Long's aircraft was shot down over Laos, but he survived the crash and endured more than four years at a prison camp in Hanoi.

"Much has been made of sacrifices that POWs made, but at least we came home alive," he said. "These men made the ultimate sacrifice."

The POWs were honored later in the afternoon at a brief ceremony attended by Gov. Linda Lingle.

"We owe you a debt we can never repay," she said. "It's almost unbelievable that people could survive so long under those kinds of conditions. It shows the strength of your character, the love for your family and your country."

The remains were unearthed from two separate crash sites in the Salavan district of Laos and may include as many as six servicemen, including Lt. Jack Rittichier, a native of Ohio, and the only member of the Coast Guard missing from the Vietnam War, military officials said.

Until extensive forensic tests are completed, however, there is no positive identification.

"We're certain we're at his site," said Lt. Col. Jerry O'Hara, spokesman for the Joint Task Force-Full Accounting, which directed the mission that recovered the remains. "It's possible, but we don't know if we got him."

Four U.S. recovery teams have been working in Laos and two in Cambodia since mid-January. Five more teams are set to leave for Vietnam next week.

In all, 1,889 Americans are still missing in Vietnam and nearby countries, 8,100 in the two Koreas and 78,000 from World War II in Europe and the Pacific.

© 2003, Media General Inc. "