She says shes not sure why she does it, but it means that shes gotten to know some of the guards. 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. DNA tests confirmed that the previously unknown soldier was, in fact, Michael Blassie. Eli Lilly to cut insulin prices by 70%, cap monthly costs at $35 Love each and every podcast . A fellow airman saw tracer rounds directed toward Mikes A-37. Whatever was known about the remains of the Vietnam Unknown had never been revealed. #inline-recirc-item--id-91b39784-8c88-11e2-b06b-024c619f5c3d ~ .item:nth-child(5) { 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. The Blassie family watches as their family member Michael, is unloaded from a C-130 Hercules cargo plane, July 10. This is a carousel with slides. The body will be cremated and her remains buried at Calvary Cemetery with her parents and grandparents. That they all made the ultimate sacrifice for me. Well, my mom cant get these kinds of phone calls, responded Patricia. In 1997, Gonzalez contacted Patricia. He thought about how terrible it was that so many people were essentially being forgotten they deserved better than that. But not all remains can be identified with such methods. It didnt matter if you wanted to honor all those who served or merely those who died, those who volunteered or those who were drafted, or even whether you were for the war or against it. Resend Activation Email, Please check the I'm not a robot checkbox, If you want to be a Photo Volunteer you must enter a ZIP Code or select your location on the map. Blood samples were collected from Patricias mother and older sister. From there, the remains and effects went to Camp Samae San, Thailand, where the US ran a search and recovery center. The Easter Offensive was the largest and most conventional ground invasion of the Vietnam War. The year after Michael Blassies death, Congress directed the Department of Defense to select the remains of an Unknown Vietnam servicemember to be interred in Arlington National Cemeterys Tomb of the Unknown. At first, there were a lot of Unknowns to work with. Today, there is no body representing Vietnam at the tomb of the unknowns. But for whatever reason, the first bad decision was not telling the family. The music is an original piece by our talented composer, Sean Real. On May 11, Communist forces unleashed an all-out assault to take An Lc. Blassie was laid to rest beneath lush bluegrass in the cemetery's oldest section, established in 1826 alongside the original military post. There are no volunteers for this cemetery. It is with great sadness that we announce the death of Michael Joseph Townsend Sr. of Snow Hill, Maryland, born in Salisbury, Maryland, who passed away on February 23, 2023, at the age of 72, leaving to mourn family and friends. Try again later. There was no question, the remains were Michaels. I wouldnt think there was a known soldier in the Tomb of the Unknowns, she recalled thinking. Michael Joseph Blassie (April 4, 1948 May 11, 1972) was a United States Air Force officer who was killed in action during the Vietnam War in May 1972. Veterans who serve at funerals call their service a way to salute their fellow warriors. }, First published on July 10, 1998 / 4:49 PM. Failed to delete memorial. She stood strong, did what was right and led the family.. After Years As Vietnam 'Unknown,' Pilot Now Buried At Home. The Romans were fond of honoring them with an empty sarcophagus. Oops, something didn't work. World War II, Korea, and Vietnam each would get their own Unknown. Michael Joseph Townsend Sr. Obituary. That destiny was already in motion. Include gps location with grave photos where possible. As far as she was concerned, the case was closed. He subsequently qualified as an A-37 Dragonfly pilot and served as a member of the 8th Special Operations Squadron, deployed to Southeast Asia. The changing of the guard is quite ceremonial there and is well worth a look. I assume now he was meaning in America but i immediately thought to other Countries national Monuments. Through these efforts, they reviewed evidence that suggested the Vietnam War Unknown was likely Air Force 1st Lt. Michael Joseph Blassie, a pilot who had been shot down in 1972. And he had only been able to find one missing plane that fully matched the planes description: Michael Blassies. During a tour of Vietnam, he served as a member of the 8th Special Operations Squadron. 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. I think I know where Michael is, he said, producing a paper trail that led to Arlington Cemetery. In: Spitz, W.U. Previously sponsored memorials or famous memorials will not have this option. If he couldnt do it, Webb would be ordered to sign off on the burial. "He's still serving today because he now represents those that need to come home," she said. Lawsuits claim it wrecked their teeth. Blassie was born in St. Louis in 1948. The government does not have the right to keep such information from the family., When I looked into all the documents and from my personal research, it was obvious that improper decisions were being made, and all of sudden Michael is the Unknown representing the missing from the Vietnam War. 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. Flying bug found at Walmart turns out to be rare Jurassic-era insect Every recovered American service member killed in action since the Vietnam War has been identified and buried. However, analysis at the time suggested that the remains were not a compelling match to Blassie's age and height. It was around this time that David Railton came across a temporary grave, a few miles behind the front, marked only by a cross bearing the name of a regiment and the words: An unknown British soldier.. St. Louis native Michael Blassie was the picture of an ideal young Air Force officer: tall, handsome, with a hospitable grin and approachable demeanor. The pressures of war put a premium on closing cases and moving on, getting the job done even if that meant rushing lab reports. There was a problem getting your location. Updated: June 21, 2016 . Improvements in evacuation, recordkeeping, and forensic science meant that almost all US remains recovered from combat zones were identified. 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. Im a former Soldier from Australia, and a Tour Guide around Europe, and i immediately thought of all the different changing of the guards, and unknown Tombs i have visited. This browser does not support getting your location. There they would rest for eight years in a file labeled X-26 until their date with destiny arrived. Producer Joe Rosenberg spoke with Robert Poole, author of On Hallowed Ground: The Story of Arlington National Cemetery; Patricia Blassie; Bill Thomas, reporter for the Washington Post; Chris Calhoon, former Army Ranger; Vince Gonzales, reporter for CBS Denver, During the last segment of your podcast, Roman asked Joe if there were any other national monuments that had a guard like this. Remains identification bordered on guesswork. Calhoon assumed that Michaels remains would be returning to his family. Michael Blassie The Final Mission. 1LT Michael Joseph Blassie Birth 4 Apr 1948 Saint Louis, St. Louis City, Missouri, USA Death 11 May 1972 (aged 24) Bnh Long, Bnh Phc, Vietnam Memorial Site* National Vietnam Veterans Memorial Washington, District of Columbia, District of Columbia, USA Show Map * A structure erected in honor of someone whose remains lie elsewhere. Even though he knew about the missing wallet, the head of the lab, using now outdated techniques, determined that the remains did not match Michael Blassies physical description. "At a moment of great crises in the history of the world, he gave of himself," Archbishop Justin Rigali said to about 350 friends, family members and current and former members of the military. With the invention of the polymerase chain reaction in 1985, DNA analysis moved to the forefront of forensic technologies. 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. Family and friends are welcome to send flowers or leave their condolences on . But the evidence that they were Blassie's was too slim, so the designation was removed in 1979. ). There is a problem with your email/password. Its one of the reasons the tomb has become one of the Washington D.C. areas biggest tourist attractions. The Army lab in Hawaii removed the BTB designation and, through a later discredited technique called morphological approximation, declared Michael Blassies remains as belonging to Unknown.. There were fewer than 25,000 US servicemen left in Vietnam, as opposed to the over 500,000 who had been deployed by the late 1960s. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed One of the most memorable actors ever almost gave it up to be an Air Force pilot. In honor of the Coast Guard's birthday, we've put together a quiz on the service's history and traditions. This dental device was sold to fix patients' jaws. His remains were finally brought home aboard a C-130 cargo plane Friday in a solemn service befitting a pilot killed in the line of duty in Vietnam. Major James Connally, Blassies flight commander, described the tragic incident in a letter to Michaels parents: Mikes plane was hit and began streaming fuel. Morphological approximation, worthless though it was, provided quick answers and a veneer of scientific validation. With DNA identification being used and hearing that there are no unknowns from Vietnam and that they are working currently on unknowns from the Korean war, I though, How wonderful that there will never again be an unknown soldier, everyone will be eventually brought home. This shielding of information from the Blassies ended up only compounding their pain. On March 21, 1984, Webb reluctantly signed. Family and friends are welcome to send flowers or leave their condolences on this memorial page and share them with . (AP Photo/James A. Finley), Pat Blassie (second from left) points out to her mother Jean Blassie (third from left) and her sister Mary Hart (right) the C-130 Hercules plane as it arrives at Scott Air Force Base with their brother Michael Blassie's remains. Ted Sampley was, you might say, a divisive figure in the veterans community. ", 1998 The Associated Press. After petitioning the United States Government for permission, his family had his body exhumed. There is nothing but reverence, respect and deep sorrow among visitors. 0 cemeteries found in Lemay, St. Louis County, Missouri, USA. CBS Evening News went public with the explosive story in a broadcast on January 19, 1998. I dont care what happened, but the documents showed that patrol went into Michaels crash site to find him, and they did. She suffered a stroke in 2004 and recently was diagnosed with pneumonia, her family said Thursday. The dedication alone attracted so many mourners, the line for viewing lasted ten days. He was constantly researching, protesting, and pressuring the Pentagon to resolve open cases. The nature of combat in Vietnam and advances in forensic medicine had made it difficult for officials to bury a Vietnam unknown. On July 11, 1998, Michael Blassie was buried at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery in St. Louis. "We put away no final memories.". or don't show this againI am good at figuring things out. 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. Becoming a Find a Grave member is fast, easy and FREE. DNA testing was in its infancy in 1972. "He and. Dubbed the super-tweet it was designed to fly low over its target. So were dozens of Michaels old friends, classmates, and comrades in arms, along with thousands of others, including Vietnam veterans, who came to commemorate the return of a lost brother. The enemy threw up what was described as a murderous hail of fire which prevented any rescue or recovery attempt. High in t the middle 30s. Even the thought that remains had been discovered near the crash site seemed preposterous. The accompanying shells found their mark. Captain Parnell wrapped the remains, and the other items found at the crash site, in plastic and held them overnight. All rights reserved. According to the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, as of this writing, there are still 1,584 US service members unaccounted for in Southeast Asia. They said Michael had been killed. 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. Blassie died when his A-37B Dragonfly was shot down near An Lc in what was then South Vietnam. There is 1 volunteer for this cemetery. But Mrs. Blassie also had a hunch. An Army band played mournfully while 21-gun salutes cracked in the distance. Id also remind them that Michael was never an Unknown Soldier. They petitioned the Department of Defense to open the site and conduct DNA testing, a technology that had been unavailable . Please check your email and click on the link to activate your account. Those vacuum-sealed samples now number some 8 million, sitting ready for a self-reference analysis in case of battlefield death. Are you adding a grave photo that will fulfill this request? "This has meant so much to us. You grow apart sometimes during this kind of tragedy. The remains were then sent to Travis Air Force Base on May 24 and arrived at Andrews Air Force Base the following day. Mike always knew what he wanted, I didnt. Then, in January 1972, he joined the 8th Special Operations Squadron of the 377th Air Base Wing at Bien Hoa Air Base near Saigon. And so it would have remained if a rookie CBS reporter named Vince Gonzalez hadnt run across Sampleys article about Blassie on the Internet. He basically sat on a shelf from 1972 to 1984, Patricia Blassie said. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Some evidence suggests that the remains ceremonially laid to rest by President Reagan 14 years ago belong to 1st Lt. Michael Joseph Blassie, a decorated flier still officially listed as missing in . Two weeks after the offensive began, combined NVA and Viet Cong forces laid siege to the provincial capital of An Lc, located 100km north of Saigon. Learn more about managing a memorial . All Rights Reserved. During my only visit to the Tomb of the Unknowns, during the changing of the guard, I witnessed what may be a rare event. The saga of the Vietnam crypt of the Tomb of the Unknown is perhaps the darkest chapter of the US Department of Defenses long-running effort to account for POW/MIAs. Thanks Dennis! Your email address will not be published. Id left school early that day, and I looked out the window when I heard a car door slam. On July 10, 1998, Michael Blassie's body was released to his family. The ARVN turned the remains and the other crash site items over to Captain William C. Parnell, who was then serving as an operations officer at An Loc. Talk to the Veterans Crisis Line now To Army scientists, these findings superseded any other evidence, such as documents or personal effects. 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. Her father died in a traffic accident when she was 9 or 10. Verify and try again. The DNA testing resulted in a perfect match with the Blassies. Test your Navy knowledge with this Navy history quiz by Military.com. {{start_at_rate}} {{format_dollars}} {{start_price}} {{format_cents}} {{term}}, {{promotional_format_dollars}}{{promotional_price}}{{promotional_format_cents}} {{term}}. Michael, after all, was her first born. Over a quarter million people lined the route to Arlington National Cemetery. Save to an Ancestry Tree, a virtual cemetery, your clipboard for pasting or Print. Members of the Air Force honor guard carry the casket containing the remains of Lt. Michael Blassie into a hearse at Scott Air Force Base on Friday, July 10, 1998. One of them told her once that their mission guarding the Unknowns is never really over. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. One of Calhoons duties, in the midst of all this chaos, was to call in airstrikes. There, a plaque holds words from. I missed the names of the two announcers who discussed the Arlington Tomb of the Unknown Soldier monument and chuckled together over some of the changing of the guard ceremony and sentry duties. No one doubted his commitment to the cause of POW/MIAs. A neighbor came over to get me, saying, Pat, you need to go inside. So I did and knew something was horribly wrong. The ability to match mtDNA between related individuals, and the fact that it does not degrade as rapidly as nuclear DNA, makes it a valuable tool in the identification of human remains. Oops, we were unable to send the email. Human beings have copies of DNA from each biological parent, stored in the nucleus of every cell. She grew bitter and even considered quitting the service. GREAT NEWS! Sampley was a former Green Beret who had served in Vietnam. 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. It was his 138th combat mission. Please contact Find a Grave at [emailprotected] if you need help resetting your password. Its conceivable that they could soon use the same techniques on the unknown serviceman inside the tomb. Articles in U.S. Members of the United States Air Force Color guard carry the casket containing the remains of Air Force Lt. Michael Blassie on July 10, 1998 at Scott Air Force Base. Signaling its determination to have its Vietnam Unknown, the Pentagon gave Webb six months to make a positive ID of X-26. From a computer genius to a popular sitcom star, talented women have made their mark in the U.S. military. Follow him on Facebook. Blassie, a 24-year-old first lieutenant, had been missing since May 11, 1972, when his A-37 fighter was shot down over An Loc during a bombing run. AFDIL has used DNA analysis to identify the remains of at least 150 military personnel from Vietnam, Korea, and World War 2, and assisted in the identification of victims from high profile disasters, both natural and man-made. Which memorial do you think is a duplicate of Michael Blassie (4245)? Failed to report flower. First Lieutenant Michael Joseph Blassie, 24, was shot down over South Vietnam in 1972 and presumed dead. My parents marriage did not survive. DNA tests confirmed that the previously unknown soldier was, in fact, Michael Blassie. 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. These sources reinforced the probability that Michael Blassies remains were in the Tomb. American serviceman who remained behind were stretched thin. Western reporters called it a mini-Stalingrad, the ugliest kind of siege warfare. How much do you know about the founding of the U.S. Army? Or so the story went. In celebration of the Marine Corps' birthday, Military.com has put together this Marine Corps history quiz. This flower has been reported and will not be visible while under review. It was on one of these bombing runs, shortly before Calhoon arrived in An Loc, that Michael Blassie flew his 132th and final mission. The bones were taken to the Central Identification Laboratory in Hawaii, where officials said they were "believed to be" those of Blassie. But his tactics were confrontational and often involved outrageous claims and conspiracy theories. All photos uploaded successfully, click on the Done button to see the photos in the gallery. Blassie, a decorated pilot, was 24 when he died in May 1972. display: none; They had a letter from his flight leader, James Connally, who recapped what had happened., Still, without remains, there was a terrible sense of open-ended grief. Bitter and even considered quitting the service and friends are welcome to send the email attempt... Apart sometimes during this kind of siege warfare be identified with such methods if need! Been reported and will not have this option show this againI am good at figuring things.... 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