Parnell wrapped the remains with the effects and held them overnight. But I know each one had a life worth living. I dont care what happened, but the documents showed that patrol went into Michaels crash site to find him, and they did. Veteran Dispatch. At flight school, Michael was assigned to fly a ground attack aircraft known as the A-37. Plot 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. You need a Find a Grave account to continue. Flying at a low altitude to drop napalm, he would have been propelled into the ground. He was constantly researching, protesting, and pressuring the Pentagon to resolve open cases. Sampleys words landed like a percussion grenade in the Blassie household. 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. Use the links under See more to quickly search for other people with the same last name in the same cemetery, city, county, etc. Oops, something didn't work. Sampley had no direct evidence proving Michael was in the tomb, but that didnt make him wrong. Try again later. He was shot down and killed while piloting his A-37B Dragonfly aircraft in the vicinity of An Loc, in South Vietnam. You are nearing the transfer limit for memorials managed by Find a Grave. Failed to remove flower. display: none; The sponsor of a memorial may add an additional. He basically sat on a shelf from 1972 to 1984, Patricia Blassie said. Close this window, and upload the photo(s) again. There is 1 volunteer for this cemetery. On the other, if he destroyed Blassies personal effects, he might condemn Blassies remains to permanent oblivion. They said Michael had been killed. Your email address will not be published. ", 1998 The Associated Press. Jean Blassie lost her son twice. I assume now he was meaning in America but i immediately thought to other Countries national Monuments. Those vacuum-sealed samples now number some 8 million, sitting ready for a self-reference analysis in case of battlefield death. 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. We believe Michael would have been proud of how we pulled together to bring him home. On July 11, 1998, Michael Blassie was buried at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery in St. Louis. Patricia still visits the tomb. She permitted Vince Gonzalez to access a trove of new documents through the Freedom of Information Act pertaining to the selection and entombment of the Vietnam Unknowns remains. Your account has been locked for 30 minutes due to too many failed sign in attempts. We wanted to know the rest of the story. It may be that forensic science has reached the point where there will be no other unknowns in any war. A hunch told him there might be something to Sampleys claims, and he began his own investigation. In May 1998, the remains were disinterred for mitochondrial DNA "fingerprinting." He believed, for example, that Senator John McCain had been brainwashed at the Hanoi Hilton and was sent back to the US to orchestrate official coverups of living POWs in Southeast Asia. If you have questions, please contact [emailprotected]. DNA is also stored in tiny, energy-producing structures in the cells, called mitochondria. He was convinced the government wasnt telling veterans everything it knew, and he was calling Patricia Blassie with an outlandish theory about Michaels death. Michaels plane had crashed deep in North Vietnamese held territory. Part 2: DNA. Michael Blassies squadron was providing that air support over An Loc. It was so exciting, she says. In Michaels case, just this once, their mission was completed. He died in 1991. No other MIA or KIA even remotely near the An Lc location would have possessed a life raft, parachute, and pistol holster. Major Johnie Webb was the officer in charge of the Armys Central Identification Laboratory in Hawaii. They were initially classified as belonging to Lt. Blassie. Helton, L.M. Its just an outsiders way of honoring all of your sacrifices. The remains were confirmed to be those of Air Force 1st Lt. Michael Blassie. The Vietnam unknown was laid to rest in Arlington National Cemetery with full military honors, beneath the headstone that reads, "Here rests in honored glory an American soldier known but to God." Even the thought that remains had been discovered near the crash site seemed preposterous. Two weeks later, Michael Blassie was buried for good near the family's home . 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. They never got updates on recovery efforts. Major James Connally spotted Blassie's plane as it went down outside An Lc on the morning of May 11, 197228 days into the battle for which the city gave its name. After nearly two decades of uncertainty, the family of Blassie can finally reveal the empty crypt in which the men and women who served in Vietnam were buried, as well as the flag that was once flown over it. Learn more about managing a memorial . Photos larger than 8Mb will be reduced. On July 10, Blassie's remains arrived home to his family in Saint Louis, Missouri and were later reinterred at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery. You are only allowed to leave one flower per day for any given memorial. Hey there beautiful nerd! That Michael might be in the Tomb of the Unknown . American serviceman who remained behind were stretched thin. Forensic anthropologists took the aged and damaged samples of bone for mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) testing. 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. Updated: June 21, 2016 . Test your Navy knowledge with this Navy history quiz by Military.com. Jean Blassie, center, mother of Air Force 1st Lt. Michael Blassie, and his sister Patricia, right, now an Air Force colonel, talk with reporters at Arlington National Cemetery on May 14,. He was unknown no more because of the determination of his mother and siblings. The city of An Loc was totally leveled it looked like Hiroshima, says Chris Calhoon who was stationed there as an Army Ranger. 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. 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. I think that barring a complete abolition of war, this is a small consolation. It wasnt until World War I that it occurred to anyone to bury a single unknown soldier in a public setting. Blassie, who was killed in Vietnam. cemeteries found within kilometers of your location will be saved to your photo volunteer list. #HonorVeterans #VetLegacies. 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. Family members linked to this person will appear here. Verify and try again. Im curious how the remains werent identifiable as Michael Blassie if he was the only remaining unidentified serviceman from the war. Michael Blassie received an appointment to the Air Force and fell in love with flying immediately. Blassie, said Ted, I believe your son is in the Tomb of the Unknown.. You can customize the cemeteries you volunteer for by selecting or deselecting below. In 1972, it was still under the control of the South Vietnamese military, along with a handful of American advisors, but it was surrounded by an invading North Vietnamese Army. But perhaps Im speaking out of turn. Without a positive match, due to Army policy, the Blassie family could not even be told that any remains had been found. To use this feature, use a newer browser. First Lieutenant Michael Joseph Blassie, 24, was shot down over South Vietnam in 1972 and presumed dead. In January 1998, CBS Evening News broke the story: The military had hidden pilot Michael Blassies identity from his family and the public. DNA tests confirmed that the previously unknown soldier was, in fact, Michael Blassie. Michael Blassie had become a cold statistic of war. Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) differs from nuclear DNA because human beings inherit mtDNA solely from the mother and share this information with siblings and maternal relatives. Another perspective on this issue is that all soldiers are unknown. Blassie's remains, which had been buried in the Tomb of the . In 1991 the Department of Defense founded the Armed Forces DNA Identification Laboratory (AFDIL). President Ronald Reagan bestowed the Medal of Honor upon the Vietnam unknown. I wouldnt think there was a known soldier in the Tomb of the Unknowns, she recalled thinking. Found more than one record for entered Email, You need to confirm this account before you can sign in. The DNA testing resulted in a perfect match with the Blassies. Webb would later call his grappling with that order the struggle of my life. On the one hand, hed risk court-martial by not destroying the evidence. Today, said President Reagan at the Tomb, we pause to embrace him and all who served so well in a war whose end offered no parades, no flags, and so little thanks. Eli Lilly to cut insulin prices by 70%, cap monthly costs at $35 There was an error deleting this problem. Your donations are vital to keeping us independent and strong! Love each and every podcast . When it came to tracking MIAs, Sampley was shrewd and tireless. This dental device was sold to fix patients' jaws. No animated GIFs, photos with additional graphics (borders, embellishments. I talked with many of them and they would say, But this is the one honor we received, and the Blassie family is disrupting that honor. I would reply, All the Vietnam Unknowns should be accounted for by the government. I would remind them of that, and Id tell them our family story. Today, there is no body representing Vietnam at the tomb of the unknowns. Saint Louis, St. Louis City, Missouri, USA. Please try again later. 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. By 1972, when Michael was deployed, Americas military presence in Southeast Asia was shrinking rapidly. Because mtDNA is passed along the maternal line, scientists compared the Unknown Soldier's DNA against two samples submitted by First Lieutenant Blassie's mother and sister and found a match. Michael Blassie received an appointment to the Air Force and fell in love with flying immediately. United States Air Force Vietnam Veteran. All Rights Reserved. Ted Sampley was, you might say, a divisive figure in the veterans community. His remains were buried in Arlington National Cemetery's Tomb of The Unknowns as an unidentified soldier from the Vietnam War. Silver StarDistinguished Flying CrossPurple HeartAir Medal & 4 Oak Leaf Clusters (OLC)Killed In Action, Thank you for fulfilling this photo request. The changing of the guard is quite ceremonial there and is well worth a look. On July 11, 1998, U.S. Air Force 1st Lt. Michael Blassie finally came home to St. Louis. Western reporters called it a mini-Stalingrad, the ugliest kind of siege warfare. I find meaning in the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier monument. Fiery train crash in Greece kills dozens, many of them students, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot loses reelection bid. but and theres always a but the nerd in me must comment that term guard was used throughout to story. Share this memorial using social media sites or email. Edit a memorial you manage or suggest changes to the memorial manager. After petitioning the United States Government for permission, his family had his body exhumed. Blassie died when his A-37B Dragonfly was shot down near An Lc in what was then South Vietnam. Jean Blassie called the family together for a round-the-table discussion. All photos uploaded successfully, click on the Done button to see the photos in the gallery. The remains would eventually arrive at the Armys Central Identification Laboratory in Hawaii, but not before thewallet which was critical in linking the remains to Blassie went missing. Previously sponsored memorials or famous memorials will not have this option. 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. I thought, Wait just a minute here, a South Vietnamese scout team with American advisors discovered the remains, found an ID and artifacts, put them on a chopper and considered their job done. The six fragments in file X-26 were the exception. Oops, we were unable to send the email. The dedication alone attracted so many mourners, the line for viewing lasted ten days. The aircraft went down in flames. 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. They were the remains of Air Force 1st Lt. Michael Joseph Blassie, who was shot down over An Loc on May 11, 1972. . Follow him on Facebook. . World War II, Korea, and Vietnam each would get their own Unknown. Many Vietnam veterans, President Ronald Reagan and First Lady Nancy Reagan visited Blassie as he lay in state in the U.S. Capitol. A funeral Mass will be at 9:30 a.m. today at Rose Philippine Duchesne Church, 2560 Parker Road, Florissant. 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. ADVERTISEMENT BY ANCESTRY.COM. The Medal of Honor bestowed upon him as the Vietnam Unknown was not transferred to Blassie after his remains were identified. They interviewed Parnell, by then a retired Colonel living in Florida. The Romans were fond of honoring them with an empty sarcophagus. It represents all soldiers who made the ultimate sacrifice for the rest of us. Captain Parnell wrapped the remains, and the other items found at the crash site, in plastic and held them overnight. The remains were exhumed in May; DNA tests that were not available 26 years ago confirmed the remains were Blassie's. Signaling its determination to have its Vietnam Unknown, the Pentagon gave Webb six months to make a positive ID of X-26. To Army scientists, these findings superseded any other evidence, such as documents or personal effects. Railton would spend his nights conducting funeral services over the often unidentifiable remains of soldiers ripped apart by shellfire, sometimes burying them on the spot or en masse in the giant craters the shells had left behind. Are you sure that you want to delete this memorial? A fellow airman saw tracer rounds directed toward Mikes A-37. Michael Joseph Townsend Sr. Obituary. Prior to the identification of his remains, Blassie was the unknown service member . For decades, the United States has honored its wartime dead by designating for burial at Arlington National Cemetery an unknown soldier, one whose anonymous tomb represents all the dead comrades and honors all their deeds. Required fields are marked *, 99% Invisible 0 cemeteries found in Lemay, St. Louis County, Missouri, USA. That was enough for Captain Patricia Blassie. Blassie's mother, three sisters and brother each carried small American flags during the service. They brought him home for burial in Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery near St. Louis. Try again later. 1st Lt. Michael Joseph Blassie was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for his heroism and extraordinary achievement while participating in aerial flight. Flowers added to the memorial appear on the bottom of the memorial or here on the Flowers tab. well, that was simply too much to believe. In 1976, they were shipped to Hawaii to be analyzed by the Armys Central Identification Laboratory (CIL-HI). Mourners included military personnel, veterans and civilians. Try again later. The pressures of war put a premium on closing cases and moving on, getting the job done even if that meant rushing lab reports. An Army band played mournfully while 21-gun salutes cracked in the distance. Morphological approximation, worthless though it was, provided quick answers and a veneer of scientific validation. The Blassies didnt know Sampley. The gravesite of 1st Lt. Michael Joseph Blassie at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery on Thursday, June 13, 2013. }, First published on July 10, 1998 / 4:49 PM. Blassie's remains were recovered later that year during a mission into the South Vietnamese jungle. That crypt would remain empty for over a decade. Which memorial do you think is a duplicate of Michael Blassie (4245)? By the time his mother found out where he was, his remains were entombed in the Tomb of the Unknowns in Washington. The Vietnam crypt of the Tomb of the Unknown, the one that contained Michael Blassies remains, has been empty since the exhumation on May 14, 1998. We've created a quiz to test your ability to recognize military aircraft. Resend Activation Email. [5] On June 30, 1998, the Defense Department announced that the Vietnam Unknown had been identified. . 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. Add to your scrapbook. Become a member of the Veterans Breakfast Club for only $36/year! How to honor unidentified remains has always been one of the great conundrums of war. Michael flew as an Air Commando, probably running covert missions into Laos and Cambodia, in addition to his official duties as forward air controller and counterinsurgency operations pilot in South Vietnam. The recruiters said if I joined the Air Force, Id travel, get excellent training,and an education. Morphological approximation presumed that one could determine personal characteristics like age and height by careful examination of bone fragments. His sister, Pat Blassie, was 10 years younger than her brother, but she remembered he started working as a kid by selling newspapers on the street corner. On May 14, 1998, the Department of the Defense disinterred the remains of the Vietnam veteran from the Tomb of the Unknowns. My father went to his grave in 1991 not knowing the rest of his sons story., Meanwhile, Patricia herself joined the Air Force. East wind * around 10 mph. Jean Frances Adrian grew up in Jennings. In celebration of the Marine Corps' birthday, Military.com has put together this Marine Corps history quiz. I thought, What is that? I went into the backyard and waited, I mean, everything seemed so strange. They were returned them home for a military burial. Even though they were still officially believed to belong to Blassie, the lab was ordered to strip the remains of their believed to be designation, and give them the anonymous designation X-26. But his tactics were confrontational and often involved outrageous claims and conspiracy theories. Mike always knew what he wanted, I didnt. 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. {{start_at_rate}} {{format_dollars}} {{start_price}} {{format_cents}} {{term}}, {{promotional_format_dollars}}{{promotional_price}}{{promotional_format_cents}} {{term}}. Thanks for using Find a Grave, if you have any feedback we would love to hear from you. During a tour of Vietnam, he served as a member of the 8th Special Operations Squadron. That single set of remains was known only as X-26, but his actual name was Michael Blassie. Pilots loved itbecause being that close the ground heightened the sense of flight and speed. display: none; Twenty-six years after he died, 1st Lt. Michael Blassie came home. } 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. For a while, Patricia struggled with her grievance toward the military establishment to which she had dedicated her career. We have set your language to GREAT NEWS! Mrs. That simple, tragic explanation would be the only one that Blassies parents ever heard for 26 years. On March 21, 1984, Webb reluctantly signed. Of those, 470 are considered non-recoverable. That is, death has been determined, but no remains can be recovered. Sampley was a former Green Beret who had served in Vietnam. If they had, they might have hung up on him. Please enter your email and password to sign in. #inline-recirc-item--id-91b39784-8c88-11e2-b06b-024c619f5c3d ~ .item:nth-child(5) { Revealing the Unknown: The Mystery of Michael Blassie | Missouri Historical Society 1st Lt. Michael Blassie was killed in action during the Vietnam War, but his remains were unrecovered because the fighting was so intense in the area where his plane crashed. 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. Then, in January 1972, he joined the 8th Special Operations Squadron of the 377th Air Base Wing at Bien Hoa Air Base near Saigon. However, analysis at the time suggested that the remains were not a compelling match to Blassie's age and height. In the early 1980s, officials chose the set of remains coded "X-26" to be interred in the Tomb of the Unknowns. 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. The goal was to schedule the ceremony before Election Day 1984, which is why Memorial Day, rather than Veterans Day, was selected. Subscribe with this special offer to keep reading, (renews at {{format_dollars}}{{start_price}}{{format_cents}}/month + tax). Blassie was then listed as "killed in action, no body recoverd." If you notice a problem with the translation, please send a message to [emailprotected] and include a link to the page and details about the problem. This memorial has been copied to your clipboard. As manager of this memorial you can add or update the memorial using the Edit button below. They detailed that Michael Blassies remains had been recovered in Vietnam and that the person who recovered them was Chris Calhoon. Michael Blassies C-37 Dragonfly was part of that defense flying support for allied South Vietnamese ground units. After hours of discussion, Jean Blassie looked at her children and said, For 26 years, we have been told that Michael was never found, according to an article in Checkpoints magazine. No one wanted to inter someone who might eventually be identified. He died on May 11, 1972 at age 24. When Britain dedicated the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior in Westminster Abbey in 1920, it garnered a lot of attention. The US Air Force responded with aerial counterattacks. Visit the digital memorial page of Veteran Michael Joseph Blassie where you can share stories, photos, biographies, obituaries, tributes and more. 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. 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. "The resting place of Michael was for so long the Tomb of the Unknowns," Rigali said. Test your knowledge! There they would rest for eight years in a file labeled X-26 until their date with destiny arrived. Learn more about merges. The Medal of Honor bestowed upon him as the Vietnam Unknown was not transferred to Blassie after his remains were identified.[6]. One of them told her once that their mission guarding the Unknowns is never really over. i . We collect and match historical records that Ancestry users have contributed to their family trees to create each person's profile. cemeteries found in Lemay, St. Louis County, Missouri, USA will be saved to your photo volunteer list. CBS Evening News went public with the explosive story in a broadcast on January 19, 1998. He must have been killed instantly since he did not transmit a distress call of any kind. Mourners are grateful for their extra effort. What is the music played at the end of this podcast? At one point he described the wounded, with their meager medical support, as looking like something out of the Civil War. Unidentified remains from that war had been analyzed over a decade and a half. I didnt even know how to go about college. Over a quarter million people lined the route to Arlington National Cemetery. Failed to delete memorial. They talked to anyone they could find who was involved in the unknown selection process, and when they felt they were ready, they handed over their findings to Patricia Blassie. CDC warns drug-resistant stomach bug a "serious public health threat" Hundreds, including Secretary of Defense William Cohen and House minority leader Richard Gephardt, attended the ceremony. 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