Army Sergeant MIA From Vietnam War Is Identified (Payne)
The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of a U.S. serviceman, missing in action from the Vietnam War, have been identified and returned to his family for burial with full military honors.
He is Master Sgt. Norman Payne, U.S. Army, of Cleveland, Ohio. He was buried on Dec. 30 in Cleveland.
Representatives from the Army met with Payne’s next-of-kin to explain the recovery and identification process, and to coordinate interment with military honors on behalf of the Secretary of the Army.
On Dec. 18, 1968, Payne was a member of a long-range reconnaissance patrol operating in Salavan Province in southern Laos. The unit set up a defensive position for the night when it was attacked by enemy forces. Payne was last seen attempting to move from one element of the patrol to the other. A rescue team searched for Payne the next day, but was forced to withdraw due to enemy activity.
Between 1993 and 2003, joint U.S./Lao/Vietnamese teams, led by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), conducted five investigations in the area of the incident.
In 2001, Vietnamese officials turned over documents that U.S. specialists believed to be related to Payne’s death. According to the documents, Vietnamese troops killed an American soldier and buried him near a stream by a Vietnamese Army field hospital in Quang Tri Province, which adjoins Salavan Province. During the investigation conducted in 2003, witnesses led the team to the location of a former field hospital where they claimed to have buried an American soldier.
In 2004 a joint U.S./Lao team excavated the reported burial site in Salavan Province but found no remains or evidence of a burial.
In 2004 and 2005, a Laotian source gave U.S. officials remains he found in Savannakhet Province, Laos, which borders Salavan Province.
Among other forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory also used mitochondrial DNA and dental comparisons in the identification of the remains.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO web site at www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call (703) 699-1169.
https://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpg00adminhttps://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpgadmin2025-03-30 15:13:082025-03-30 15:13:09Master Sgt. Norman Payne
Army Soldiers MIA From Vietnam War Are Identified (Crosby, Allen, Graziosi)
The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of three U.S. servicemen, missing in action from the Vietnam War, have been identified and will be returned to their families for burial with full military honors.
They are Capt. Herbert C. Crosby, of Donalsonville, Ga., Sgt. 1st Class Wayne C. Allen, of Tewksbury, Mass., and Sgt. 1st Class Francis G. Graziosi, of Rochester, N.Y., all U.S. Army. Burial dates and locations are being set by their families.
Representatives from the Army met with the next-of-kin of these men to explain the recovery and identification process, and to coordinate interment with military honors on behalf of the Secretary of the Army.
On Jan. 10, 1970, these men were returning to their base at Chu Lai, South Vietnam aboard a UH-1C Huey helicopter. Due to bad weather, their helicopter went down over Quang Nam Province. A search was initiated for the crew, but no sign of the helicopter or crew was spotted.
In 1989, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (S.R.V.) gave to U.S. specialists 25 boxes containing the remains of the U.S. servicemen related to this incident. Later that year, additional remains and Crosby’s identification tag were obtained from a Vietnamese refugee.
Between 1993 and 1999, joint U.S./S.R.V. teams, led by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), conducted three investigations in Ho Chi Minh City and two investigations in Quang Nam-Da Nang Province (formerly Quang Nam Province). A Vietnamese informant in Ho Chi Minh City told the team he knew where the remains of as many as nine American servicemen were buried. He agreed to lead the team to the burial site. In 1994, the team excavated the site and recovered a metal box and several bags containing human remains, including those of these three soldiers.
Among other forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory also used mitochondrial DNA and dental comparisons in the identification of the remains.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO web site at or call (703) 699-1169.
Air Force Pilot Missing In Action From Vietnam War Is Identified (Hull)
The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of a U.S. serviceman, missing in action from the Vietnam War, have been identified and will soon be returned to his family for burial with full military honors.
He is 1st Lt. James L. Hull, U.S. Air Force, of Lubbock, Texas. He will be buried on Nov. 13 at Arlington National Cemetery near Washington, D.C.
On Feb. 19, 1971, Hull and a fellow crew member were flying a mission near the Laos/Vietnam border when their O-2A Skymaster crashed. Both men died, but Hull’s body was buried in the wreckage and could not be recovered because of hostile enemy action.
Between 1993 and 1997, the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC) led three investigations with U.S./Socialist Republic of Vietnam (S.R.V.) teams, and one trilateral investigation with a Lao People’s Democratic Republic (L.P.D.R.) team. During the first investigation, the team interviewed a Vietnamese citizen who produced human remains and an identification tag for Hull that he claimed to have recovered from a crash site located just inside Laos. The joint team was not allowed to cross the border and the investigation was suspended. The Vietnamese turned over the bone fragment to U.S. officials, but the ID tag’s whereabouts are still unknown.
Additional investigations yielded some information concerning a crash site located just inside the Laotian border. The S.R.V. allowed a Vietnamese national to walk to the purported crash site and collect a fragment of the wreckage. Based on the location, type of aircraft and retrieved wreckage, analysts determined it was Hull’s crash site.
In May 2006, a joint U.S./L.P.D.R. team excavated the site where they recovered additional evidence and human remains.
Among other forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory also used mitochondrial DNA from a known maternal relative in the identification of the remains.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO web site at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call (703) 699-1169.
https://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpg00adminhttps://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpgadmin2025-03-30 07:36:172025-03-30 07:36:191st Lt. James L. Hull
Soldiers Missing In Action From The Korean War Are Identified (Alonzo, Bucheit, Lindsay, Gregori, Scarbrough, Sisk, Sizemore, Wood)
The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of eight U.S. servicemen, missing in action from the Korean War, have been identified and returned to their families for burial with full military honors.
They are Master Sgt. Alfred H. Alonzo Sr., of Tampa, Fla.; Sgt. 1st Class Robert C. Bucheit, of Hamilton, Ohio; Sgt. Francis E. Lindsay, of Esther, Mo.; Cpl. Joseph Gregori, of West Pittston, Pa.; Cpl. Darrell W. Scarbrough, of Fayetteville, W. Va.; Cpl. Homer L. Sisk, Jr., of Ducor, Calif.; Cpl. Charles E. Sizemore, of Rushville, Ind.; and Cpl. William E. Wood, of Moorhead, Minn.; all U.S. Army. Gregori was buried in August; Bucheit was buried in September; Scarbrough, Sisk and Sizemore were buried in October; Alonzo was buried in November; and Lindsay and Wood’s burial dates are being set by their families.
Representatives from the Army met with the next-of-kin of these men in their hometowns to explain the recovery and identification process and to coordinate interment with military honors on behalf of the Secretary of the Army.
The soldiers were assigned to the U.S. 8th Cavalry Regiment and attached units (1st Cavalry Division), when their unit came under attack by Chinese forces near Unsan, North Korea on the night of Nov. 1-2, 1950. During the battle, these eight and nearly 400 others from the 8th Cavalry Regiment were declared missing or killed in action.
In 2000, a joint U.S.-Democratic People’s Republic of Korea team, led by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), interviewed a farmer living in the vicinity of Unsan who told the team that while doing land reclamation work, he uncovered remains he believed were those of U.S. soldiers.
The team excavated the burial site and uncovered the remains of at least 10 different individuals. They also recovered other items and identification tags belonging to these eight men.
Among other forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory also used mitochondrial DNA and dental comparisons in the identification of the remains. Some of the remains could not be identified and will be held for further research and analysis.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO web site at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call (703) 699-1169.
Soldier Missing In Action From The Korean War Is Identified (Layton)
The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of a U.S. serviceman, missing in action from the Korean War, have been identified and returned to his family for burial with full military honors.
He is Master Sgt. Robert V. Layton, U.S. Army, of Cincinnati, Ohio. He is to be buried tomorrow at Arlington National Cemetery near Washington D.C.
Layton was assigned to Company A, 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division (making up the 31st Regimental Combat Team). The RCT was engaged against the Chinese People’s Volunteer Forces along the Chosin Reservoir, North Korea. After intense fighting from Nov. 27-Dec. 1, 1950, the 1/32 Infantry was forced to abandon its position, leaving its dead behind. Layton was listed as Missing in Action on Dec. 2, 1950, and was later presumed Killed in Action.
Between 2002 and 2004, joint U.S.-Democratic People’s Republic of North Korea teams, led by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), seven times excavated a mass burial site associated with the 31st RCT along the eastern shore of the Chosin Reservoir. The team found human remains and other material evidence, including Layton’s identification tag and part of his billfold containing a newspaper clipping reporting on a Bronze Star being awarded to “Sgt. Robert Layton” circa 1944.
Among other forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory also used mitochondrial DNA and dental comparisons in the identification of the remains.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO web site at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call (703) 699-1169.
https://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpg00adminhttps://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpgadmin2025-03-30 07:34:552025-03-30 07:34:57Master Sgt. Robert V. Layton
Soldier Missing In Action From The Korean War Is Identified (Long)
The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of a U.S. serviceman, missing in action from the Korean War, have been identified and returned to his family for burial with full military honors.
He is Pfc. Charles H. Long, U.S. Army, of Durand, Ill. He will be buried Nov. 25 in Durand.
Representatives from the Army met with the next-of-kin to explain the recovery and identification process and to coordinate interment with military honors on behalf of the Secretary of the Army.
On March 24, 1953, Long was one of four men from L Company, 3rd Battalion, 31st Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division, who was declared missing in action after engaging enemy forces north of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) on what came to be known as Pork Chop Hill. The bodies of two of the MIAs were recovered and a third MIA was returned alive during Operation Big Switch after having been captured by Chinese Communist Forces. Long remained unaccounted-for and eventually declared dead on March 24, 1954.
In 1993, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) gave United Nations officials 33 boxes with human remains of alleged U.S. servicemen who were unaccounted-for. The DPRK recovered the remains near Komsa-ri in Kangwon Province, which was near Long’s last known location. Also included in one of the boxes were Long’s social security and identification cards and identification tags.
Among other forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC) and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory also used mitochondrial DNA and dental comparisons in the identification of the remains.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO web site at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call (703) 699-1169.
https://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpg00adminhttps://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpgadmin2025-03-30 07:34:052025-03-30 07:34:07Pfc. Charles H. Long
Air Force Pilot MIA From Vietnam War Is Identified (Scharf)
The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of a U.S. Air Force officer missing in action from the Vietnam War have been identified and are being returned to his family for burial with full military honors.
He is Col. Charles J. Scharf of San Diego. His funeral is scheduled for Nov. 30 at Arlington National Cemetery near Washington D.C.
Col. Scharf and a fellow crew member took off in their F-4C Phantom IIs from Ubon Royal Thai Air Force Base in Thailand on October 1, 1965. Their mission was to attack an enemy concentration and a major highway in North Vietnam. After the lead aircraft developed problems en route, Scharf assumed the lead of the two other F-4s in the flight. After he completed two bombing runs, Scharf’s aircraft was hit by enemy fire. His radio transmission of “Mayday, Mayday, Mayday” was heard by the other two aircraft. One radioed “Gator 3 (Scharf’s call sign), you’re on fire, you’d better get out! Bail out, Gator 3!” Scharf’s plane began to disintegrate and a parachute was seen leaving the aircraft.
The other two aircraft lost sight of the parachute, and circled the area for about 10 minutes where Scharf’s aircraft had crashed and burned but no radio or visual contact was made then nor in subsequent aerial search and rescue operations.
In January 1990, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (S.R.V.) provided information to U.S. officials indicating two men were buried near their crash site, but that one had been washed away during flooding. Within a month, a joint U.S.-S.R.V. team, led by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), interviewed three witnesses to the crash and located scattered wreckage at the site. The 1992 excavation of that site yielded human remains, a dental prosthesis, numerous personal effects including the rank insignia of Scharf’s fellow crewman. A second joint excavation in 1993 recovered additional artifacts, but no remains.
A third excavation in 2004 recovered additional evidence including pilot-related lifesupport artifacts, a metal captain’s insignia (Scharf’s rank at the time) and a plastic denture tooth.
Among dental records and other forensic tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory (AFDIL) also attempted to use mitochondrial DNA from a known maternal relative to establish the identification. However, the tests were inconclusive. From Scharf’s widow, they obtained a number of envelopes containing letters he had sent to her during the war. AFDIL specialists were able to extract mitochondrial DNA from the gummed adhesive on those envelopes, and JPAC was able to confirm the identification. JPAC’s detailed analysis of the debris and other evidence concluded that the parachute sighted was the F-4C’s drag parachute.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO web site at www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call (703) 699-1169.
https://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpg00adminhttps://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpgadmin2025-03-30 07:33:342025-03-30 07:33:36Col. Charles J. Scharf
Marine MIA From Vietnam War Is Identified (Widener)
The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of a U.S. serviceman, missing in action from the Vietnam War, have been identified and returned to his family for burial with full military honors.
He is Pfc. James E. Widener, U.S. Marine Corps, of Churchville, N.Y. He will be buried on Friday at Arlington National Cemetery near Washington, D.C.
On June 11, 1967, Widener was one of 11 passengers on board a CH-46A Sea Knight helicopter that was inserting ground forces into Quang Tri Province, South Vietnam, when the aircraft crashed. Pilots from two nearby helicopters saw the crash and reported that none of the men on board could have survived. Aircraft flew over the site for several hours, but aircrew didn’t observe and survivors. A patrol was sent the next day to confirm the status of the 11 crewmembers, but the site could not be accessed due to enemy forces in the area. Later that month, enemy activity prevented a second attempt to patrol the site.
Between 1993 and 1994, U.S./Socialist Republic of Vietnam (S.R.V.) teams, led by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), conducted two surveys of an area that was believed to be Widener’s crash site. The teams also interviewed several Vietnamese citizens who recalled the crash. Two of the citizens claimed to have seen bone fragments while scavenging the site years earlier. When the teams visited the purported crash site, they found small pieces of wreckage, but found no human remains.
In May 2005, Vietnamese officials notified U.S. specialists that possible human remains were present at a district security compound in Quang Tri province. The Vietnamese claimed to have confiscated the remains and other items, including Widener’s identification tag, from a Vietnamese local in 1996. The remains were then buried in the security compound, but the ID tag and other material evidence had supposedly been lost over the years. Later that month, a U.S./S.R.V. team excavated the burial site in the security compound and recovered a box containing human remains.
Among dental records and other forensic tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory also used mitochondrial DNA from two known maternal relatives to confirm the identification of the remains.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO web site at or call (703) 699-1169.
https://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpg00adminhttps://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpgadmin2025-03-30 07:32:582025-03-30 07:33:00Pfc. James E. Widener
Air Force Aviator MIA From Vietnam War Is Identified (Bifolchi)
The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of a U.S. serviceman, missing in action from the Vietnam War, have been identified and returned to his family for burial with full military honors.
He is Maj. Charles L. Bifolchi, U.S. Air Force, of Quincy, Mass. He will be buried on Oct. 27 at Arlington National Cemetery near Washington, D.C.
On Jan. 8, 1968, Bifolchi and a fellow crewmember were flying an armed reconnaissance mission against enemy targets in Kon Tum Province, South Vietnam, when their RF-4C aircraft disappeared. A U.S. Army helicopter crew found their aircraft wreckage soon after first light the next day. Search efforts continued for four days; however, enemy activity in the area, combined with the steep terrain and high winds at the crash site, precluded the recovery of the crewmen.
Between 1993 and 2000, U.S./Socialist Republic of Vietnam (S.R.V.) teams, led by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), conducted two surveys of an area that was believed to be Bifolchi’s crash site. One team interviewed two Vietnamese citizens who turned over human remains they claimed to have recovered at the site. Another team found wreckage consistent with Bifolchi’s aircraft.
Among other forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory also used mitochondrial DNA from a known maternal relative in the identification of the remains.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO web site at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call (703) 699-1169.
https://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpg00adminhttps://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpgadmin2025-03-30 07:32:312025-03-30 07:32:32Maj. Charles L. Bifolchi
Soldier Missing In Action From The Korean War Is Identified (Crater)
The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of a U.S. serviceman, missing in action from the Korean War, have been identified and returned to his family for burial with full military honors.
He is Pfc. Francis Crater, Jr., U.S. Army’s 32nd Infantry Regiment, of Barberton, Ohio. He will be buried Oct. 21 in Akron, Ohio.
From Nov. 27-Dec. 1, 1950, the U.S. Army’s 31st Regimental Combat Team, to which Crater’s regiment was temporarily assigned, fought elements of the Chinese People’s Volunteer Forces in the Changjin Reservoir, North Korea. After intense fighting, the 1/32 Infantry was forced to abandon its position, leaving its dead behind. Regimental records compiled after the battle indicate that Crater was killed in action on Nov. 28, 1950.
Between 2002 and 2003, two joint U.S.-Democratic People’s Republic of North Korea teams, led by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), excavated two, adjacent mass graves on the eastern shore of the Chosin Reservoir believed to be burial sites of U.S. soldiers from the 31st RCT. The team found human remains for eight individuals and other material evidence, including Crater’s identification tags.
Among other forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory also used mitochondrial DNA and dental comparisons in the identification of the remains.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO web site at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call (703) 699-1169.
https://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpg00adminhttps://pow-mia-kia.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/logo-300x200.jpgadmin2025-03-30 07:31:562025-03-30 07:31:57Pfc. Francis Crater, Jr.
Master Sgt. Norman Payne
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | Jan. 4, 2007
Army Sergeant MIA From Vietnam War Is Identified (Payne)
The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of a U.S. serviceman, missing in action from the Vietnam War, have been identified and returned to his family for burial with full military honors.
He is Master Sgt. Norman Payne, U.S. Army, of Cleveland, Ohio. He was buried on Dec. 30 in Cleveland.
Representatives from the Army met with Payne’s next-of-kin to explain the recovery and identification process, and to coordinate interment with military honors on behalf of the Secretary of the Army.
On Dec. 18, 1968, Payne was a member of a long-range reconnaissance patrol operating in Salavan Province in southern Laos. The unit set up a defensive position for the night when it was attacked by enemy forces. Payne was last seen attempting to move from one element of the patrol to the other. A rescue team searched for Payne the next day, but was forced to withdraw due to enemy activity.
Between 1993 and 2003, joint U.S./Lao/Vietnamese teams, led by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), conducted five investigations in the area of the incident.
In 2001, Vietnamese officials turned over documents that U.S. specialists believed to be related to Payne’s death. According to the documents, Vietnamese troops killed an American soldier and buried him near a stream by a Vietnamese Army field hospital in Quang Tri Province, which adjoins Salavan Province. During the investigation conducted in 2003, witnesses led the team to the location of a former field hospital where they claimed to have buried an American soldier.
In 2004 a joint U.S./Lao team excavated the reported burial site in Salavan Province but found no remains or evidence of a burial.
In 2004 and 2005, a Laotian source gave U.S. officials remains he found in Savannakhet Province, Laos, which borders Salavan Province.
Among other forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory also used mitochondrial DNA and dental comparisons in the identification of the remains.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO web site at www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call (703) 699-1169.
Crosby, Allen, Graziosi
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | Dec. 19, 2006
Army Soldiers MIA From Vietnam War Are Identified (Crosby, Allen, Graziosi)
The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of three U.S. servicemen, missing in action from the Vietnam War, have been identified and will be returned to their families for burial with full military honors.
They are Capt. Herbert C. Crosby, of Donalsonville, Ga., Sgt. 1st Class Wayne C. Allen, of Tewksbury, Mass., and Sgt. 1st Class Francis G. Graziosi, of Rochester, N.Y., all U.S. Army. Burial dates and locations are being set by their families.
Representatives from the Army met with the next-of-kin of these men to explain the recovery and identification process, and to coordinate interment with military honors on behalf of the Secretary of the Army.
On Jan. 10, 1970, these men were returning to their base at Chu Lai, South Vietnam aboard a UH-1C Huey helicopter. Due to bad weather, their helicopter went down over Quang Nam Province. A search was initiated for the crew, but no sign of the helicopter or crew was spotted.
In 1989, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (S.R.V.) gave to U.S. specialists 25 boxes containing the remains of the U.S. servicemen related to this incident. Later that year, additional remains and Crosby’s identification tag were obtained from a Vietnamese refugee.
Between 1993 and 1999, joint U.S./S.R.V. teams, led by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), conducted three investigations in Ho Chi Minh City and two investigations in Quang Nam-Da Nang Province (formerly Quang Nam Province). A Vietnamese informant in Ho Chi Minh City told the team he knew where the remains of as many as nine American servicemen were buried. He agreed to lead the team to the burial site. In 1994, the team excavated the site and recovered a metal box and several bags containing human remains, including those of these three soldiers.
Among other forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory also used mitochondrial DNA and dental comparisons in the identification of the remains.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO web site at or call (703) 699-1169.
1st Lt. James L. Hull
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | Dec. 12, 2006
Air Force Pilot Missing In Action From Vietnam War Is Identified (Hull)
The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of a U.S. serviceman, missing in action from the Vietnam War, have been identified and will soon be returned to his family for burial with full military honors.
He is 1st Lt. James L. Hull, U.S. Air Force, of Lubbock, Texas. He will be buried on Nov. 13 at Arlington National Cemetery near Washington, D.C.
On Feb. 19, 1971, Hull and a fellow crew member were flying a mission near the Laos/Vietnam border when their O-2A Skymaster crashed. Both men died, but Hull’s body was buried in the wreckage and could not be recovered because of hostile enemy action.
Between 1993 and 1997, the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC) led three investigations with U.S./Socialist Republic of Vietnam (S.R.V.) teams, and one trilateral investigation with a Lao People’s Democratic Republic (L.P.D.R.) team. During the first investigation, the team interviewed a Vietnamese citizen who produced human remains and an identification tag for Hull that he claimed to have recovered from a crash site located just inside Laos. The joint team was not allowed to cross the border and the investigation was suspended. The Vietnamese turned over the bone fragment to U.S. officials, but the ID tag’s whereabouts are still unknown.
Additional investigations yielded some information concerning a crash site located just inside the Laotian border. The S.R.V. allowed a Vietnamese national to walk to the purported crash site and collect a fragment of the wreckage. Based on the location, type of aircraft and retrieved wreckage, analysts determined it was Hull’s crash site.
In May 2006, a joint U.S./L.P.D.R. team excavated the site where they recovered additional evidence and human remains.
Among other forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory also used mitochondrial DNA from a known maternal relative in the identification of the remains.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO web site at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call (703) 699-1169.
Alonzo, Bucheit, Lindsay, Gregori, Scarbrough, Sisk, Sizemore, Wood
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | Dec. 1, 2006
Soldiers Missing In Action From The Korean War Are Identified (Alonzo, Bucheit, Lindsay, Gregori, Scarbrough, Sisk, Sizemore, Wood)
The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of eight U.S. servicemen, missing in action from the Korean War, have been identified and returned to their families for burial with full military honors.
They are Master Sgt. Alfred H. Alonzo Sr., of Tampa, Fla.; Sgt. 1st Class Robert C. Bucheit, of Hamilton, Ohio; Sgt. Francis E. Lindsay, of Esther, Mo.; Cpl. Joseph Gregori, of West Pittston, Pa.; Cpl. Darrell W. Scarbrough, of Fayetteville, W. Va.; Cpl. Homer L. Sisk, Jr., of Ducor, Calif.; Cpl. Charles E. Sizemore, of Rushville, Ind.; and Cpl. William E. Wood, of Moorhead, Minn.; all U.S. Army. Gregori was buried in August; Bucheit was buried in September; Scarbrough, Sisk and Sizemore were buried in October; Alonzo was buried in November; and Lindsay and Wood’s burial dates are being set by their families.
Representatives from the Army met with the next-of-kin of these men in their hometowns to explain the recovery and identification process and to coordinate interment with military honors on behalf of the Secretary of the Army.
The soldiers were assigned to the U.S. 8th Cavalry Regiment and attached units (1st Cavalry Division), when their unit came under attack by Chinese forces near Unsan, North Korea on the night of Nov. 1-2, 1950. During the battle, these eight and nearly 400 others from the 8th Cavalry Regiment were declared missing or killed in action.
In 2000, a joint U.S.-Democratic People’s Republic of Korea team, led by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), interviewed a farmer living in the vicinity of Unsan who told the team that while doing land reclamation work, he uncovered remains he believed were those of U.S. soldiers.
The team excavated the burial site and uncovered the remains of at least 10 different individuals. They also recovered other items and identification tags belonging to these eight men.
Among other forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory also used mitochondrial DNA and dental comparisons in the identification of the remains. Some of the remains could not be identified and will be held for further research and analysis.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO web site at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call (703) 699-1169.
Master Sgt. Robert V. Layton
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | Nov. 27, 2006
Soldier Missing In Action From The Korean War Is Identified (Layton)
The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of a U.S. serviceman, missing in action from the Korean War, have been identified and returned to his family for burial with full military honors.
He is Master Sgt. Robert V. Layton, U.S. Army, of Cincinnati, Ohio. He is to be buried tomorrow at Arlington National Cemetery near Washington D.C.
Layton was assigned to Company A, 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division (making up the 31st Regimental Combat Team). The RCT was engaged against the Chinese People’s Volunteer Forces along the Chosin Reservoir, North Korea. After intense fighting from Nov. 27-Dec. 1, 1950, the 1/32 Infantry was forced to abandon its position, leaving its dead behind. Layton was listed as Missing in Action on Dec. 2, 1950, and was later presumed Killed in Action.
Between 2002 and 2004, joint U.S.-Democratic People’s Republic of North Korea teams, led by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), seven times excavated a mass burial site associated with the 31st RCT along the eastern shore of the Chosin Reservoir. The team found human remains and other material evidence, including Layton’s identification tag and part of his billfold containing a newspaper clipping reporting on a Bronze Star being awarded to “Sgt. Robert Layton” circa 1944.
Among other forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory also used mitochondrial DNA and dental comparisons in the identification of the remains.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO web site at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call (703) 699-1169.
Pfc. Charles H. Long
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | Nov. 21, 2006
Soldier Missing In Action From The Korean War Is Identified (Long)
The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of a U.S. serviceman, missing in action from the Korean War, have been identified and returned to his family for burial with full military honors.
He is Pfc. Charles H. Long, U.S. Army, of Durand, Ill. He will be buried Nov. 25 in Durand.
Representatives from the Army met with the next-of-kin to explain the recovery and identification process and to coordinate interment with military honors on behalf of the Secretary of the Army.
On March 24, 1953, Long was one of four men from L Company, 3rd Battalion, 31st Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division, who was declared missing in action after engaging enemy forces north of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) on what came to be known as Pork Chop Hill. The bodies of two of the MIAs were recovered and a third MIA was returned alive during Operation Big Switch after having been captured by Chinese Communist Forces. Long remained unaccounted-for and eventually declared dead on March 24, 1954.
In 1993, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) gave United Nations officials 33 boxes with human remains of alleged U.S. servicemen who were unaccounted-for. The DPRK recovered the remains near Komsa-ri in Kangwon Province, which was near Long’s last known location. Also included in one of the boxes were Long’s social security and identification cards and identification tags.
Among other forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC) and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory also used mitochondrial DNA and dental comparisons in the identification of the remains.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO web site at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call (703) 699-1169.
Col. Charles J. Scharf
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | Nov. 9, 2006
Air Force Pilot MIA From Vietnam War Is Identified (Scharf)
The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of a U.S. Air Force officer missing in action from the Vietnam War have been identified and are being returned to his family for burial with full military honors.
He is Col. Charles J. Scharf of San Diego. His funeral is scheduled for Nov. 30 at Arlington National Cemetery near Washington D.C.
Col. Scharf and a fellow crew member took off in their F-4C Phantom IIs from Ubon Royal Thai Air Force Base in Thailand on October 1, 1965. Their mission was to attack an enemy concentration and a major highway in North Vietnam. After the lead aircraft developed problems en route, Scharf assumed the lead of the two other F-4s in the flight. After he completed two bombing runs, Scharf’s aircraft was hit by enemy fire. His radio transmission of “Mayday, Mayday, Mayday” was heard by the other two aircraft. One radioed “Gator 3 (Scharf’s call sign), you’re on fire, you’d better get out! Bail out, Gator 3!” Scharf’s plane began to disintegrate and a parachute was seen leaving the aircraft.
The other two aircraft lost sight of the parachute, and circled the area for about 10 minutes where Scharf’s aircraft had crashed and burned but no radio or visual contact was made then nor in subsequent aerial search and rescue operations.
In January 1990, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (S.R.V.) provided information to U.S. officials indicating two men were buried near their crash site, but that one had been washed away during flooding. Within a month, a joint U.S.-S.R.V. team, led by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), interviewed three witnesses to the crash and located scattered wreckage at the site. The 1992 excavation of that site yielded human remains, a dental prosthesis, numerous personal effects including the rank insignia of Scharf’s fellow crewman. A second joint excavation in 1993 recovered additional artifacts, but no remains.
A third excavation in 2004 recovered additional evidence including pilot-related lifesupport artifacts, a metal captain’s insignia (Scharf’s rank at the time) and a plastic denture tooth.
Among dental records and other forensic tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory (AFDIL) also attempted to use mitochondrial DNA from a known maternal relative to establish the identification. However, the tests were inconclusive. From Scharf’s widow, they obtained a number of envelopes containing letters he had sent to her during the war. AFDIL specialists were able to extract mitochondrial DNA from the gummed adhesive on those envelopes, and JPAC was able to confirm the identification. JPAC’s detailed analysis of the debris and other evidence concluded that the parachute sighted was the F-4C’s drag parachute.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO web site at www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call (703) 699-1169.
Pfc. James E. Widener
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | Nov. 1, 2006
Marine MIA From Vietnam War Is Identified (Widener)
The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of a U.S. serviceman, missing in action from the Vietnam War, have been identified and returned to his family for burial with full military honors.
He is Pfc. James E. Widener, U.S. Marine Corps, of Churchville, N.Y. He will be buried on Friday at Arlington National Cemetery near Washington, D.C.
On June 11, 1967, Widener was one of 11 passengers on board a CH-46A Sea Knight helicopter that was inserting ground forces into Quang Tri Province, South Vietnam, when the aircraft crashed. Pilots from two nearby helicopters saw the crash and reported that none of the men on board could have survived. Aircraft flew over the site for several hours, but aircrew didn’t observe and survivors. A patrol was sent the next day to confirm the status of the 11 crewmembers, but the site could not be accessed due to enemy forces in the area. Later that month, enemy activity prevented a second attempt to patrol the site.
Between 1993 and 1994, U.S./Socialist Republic of Vietnam (S.R.V.) teams, led by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), conducted two surveys of an area that was believed to be Widener’s crash site. The teams also interviewed several Vietnamese citizens who recalled the crash. Two of the citizens claimed to have seen bone fragments while scavenging the site years earlier. When the teams visited the purported crash site, they found small pieces of wreckage, but found no human remains.
In May 2005, Vietnamese officials notified U.S. specialists that possible human remains were present at a district security compound in Quang Tri province. The Vietnamese claimed to have confiscated the remains and other items, including Widener’s identification tag, from a Vietnamese local in 1996. The remains were then buried in the security compound, but the ID tag and other material evidence had supposedly been lost over the years. Later that month, a U.S./S.R.V. team excavated the burial site in the security compound and recovered a box containing human remains.
Among dental records and other forensic tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory also used mitochondrial DNA from two known maternal relatives to confirm the identification of the remains.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO web site at or call (703) 699-1169.
Maj. Charles L. Bifolchi
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | Oct. 25, 2006
Air Force Aviator MIA From Vietnam War Is Identified (Bifolchi)
The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of a U.S. serviceman, missing in action from the Vietnam War, have been identified and returned to his family for burial with full military honors.
He is Maj. Charles L. Bifolchi, U.S. Air Force, of Quincy, Mass. He will be buried on Oct. 27 at Arlington National Cemetery near Washington, D.C.
On Jan. 8, 1968, Bifolchi and a fellow crewmember were flying an armed reconnaissance mission against enemy targets in Kon Tum Province, South Vietnam, when their RF-4C aircraft disappeared. A U.S. Army helicopter crew found their aircraft wreckage soon after first light the next day. Search efforts continued for four days; however, enemy activity in the area, combined with the steep terrain and high winds at the crash site, precluded the recovery of the crewmen.
Between 1993 and 2000, U.S./Socialist Republic of Vietnam (S.R.V.) teams, led by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), conducted two surveys of an area that was believed to be Bifolchi’s crash site. One team interviewed two Vietnamese citizens who turned over human remains they claimed to have recovered at the site. Another team found wreckage consistent with Bifolchi’s aircraft.
Among other forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory also used mitochondrial DNA from a known maternal relative in the identification of the remains.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO web site at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call (703) 699-1169.
Pfc. Francis Crater, Jr.
Recently IdentifiedPress Release | Oct. 20, 2006
Soldier Missing In Action From The Korean War Is Identified (Crater)
The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of a U.S. serviceman, missing in action from the Korean War, have been identified and returned to his family for burial with full military honors.
He is Pfc. Francis Crater, Jr., U.S. Army’s 32nd Infantry Regiment, of Barberton, Ohio. He will be buried Oct. 21 in Akron, Ohio.
From Nov. 27-Dec. 1, 1950, the U.S. Army’s 31st Regimental Combat Team, to which Crater’s regiment was temporarily assigned, fought elements of the Chinese People’s Volunteer Forces in the Changjin Reservoir, North Korea. After intense fighting, the 1/32 Infantry was forced to abandon its position, leaving its dead behind. Regimental records compiled after the battle indicate that Crater was killed in action on Nov. 28, 1950.
Between 2002 and 2003, two joint U.S.-Democratic People’s Republic of North Korea teams, led by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), excavated two, adjacent mass graves on the eastern shore of the Chosin Reservoir believed to be burial sites of U.S. soldiers from the 31st RCT. The team found human remains for eight individuals and other material evidence, including Crater’s identification tags.
Among other forensic identification tools and circumstantial evidence, scientists from JPAC and the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory also used mitochondrial DNA and dental comparisons in the identification of the remains.
For additional information on the Defense Department’s mission to account for missing Americans, visit the DPMO web site at http://www.dtic.mil/dpmo or call (703) 699-1169.