Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency works to make sure the missing are never forgotten
When the United States sends it sons and daughters off to conflicts around the globe, it is done with the promise that those military personnel will return home.
Ideally, they will come back in one piece, with memories of service to their nation and stories to swap with other veterans as they gather.
Others aren’t so lucky, bringing home scars — both visible and invisible or in a flag-draped coffin and the thanks of a grateful nation, the only solace for a mother’s tears.
The most tragic of all, are those who never come home. Those who go missing in action, many eventually presumed dead. Without the closure their loss remains an open wound, a persistent ache in the souls of surviving family, friends and loved ones.
The United States military takes its promises seriously and through the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) works tirelessly to fulfill the promise that every service member is accounted for and brought home.
The agency’s mission is a deceptively simply one to “Provide the fullest possible accounting for our missing personnel to their families and the nation.”
To that end, forensic teams dig through the sands of coral atolls, scour aerial photos of the jungles of Vietnam for repurposed remnants of downed aircraft, and who use miracles of modern science to match the remains that were long listed as unknown within the rolls of the missing.
DPAA has been described as an organization that keeps one inviolable promise – that the fallen will never be forgotten Within the mission, of the DPAA, staff search for missing personnel from World War II (WWII), the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Cold War, the Gulf Wars, and other recent conflicts. The research and operational missions include coordination with hundreds of countries and municipalities around the world.
The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) established March 29, 1973, as the start date for the past conflict personnel accounting mission. This date marks the establishment of the United States Army Central Identification Laboratory, Thailand (CIL-THAI) and reflects the start of the continuous lineage of past conflict personnel accounting organizations that preceded DPAA. Definitizing this start date ensures the total number of accounted-for personnel reported to families, the Congress, and the public is consistent and accurate.
Currently less than 81,000 Americans remain missing from WWII, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Cold War, and the Gulf Wars/other conflicts. Out of the less than 81,000 missing, 75% of the losses are located in the Indo-Pacific, and over 41,000 of the missing are presumed lost at sea (i.e. ship losses, known aircraft water losses, etc.).
As of 1973, the number of missing WWII personnel was 73,684. And to date 1,834 have been accounted for. Of the 8,157 missing in action from the Korean War, 759 have been accounted for.
Of the 2,633 missing in action from the Vietnam War, 1,067 have been accounted for. Of the 128 Cold War missing in action, two have been accounted for. Six remain missing and unaccounted from the Gulf War. What these numbers show is that while the DPAA has made strides to fulfilling its mission and promise, there is still a long way to go.
In addition to the DPAA, there are also private groups that work to ensure that legacy of military personnel missing in action are not forgotten.
The National League of POW/MIA Families, incorporated on May 28, 1970, was formed with the threefold mission to obtain the release of all prisoners of war, the fullest possible accounting for the missing and repatriation of all recoverable remains of those who died serving our nation during the Vietnam War. The league is proud that their efforts led to today's worldwide accounting mission and contributed to humanitarian and diplomatic normalization efforts. The organization’s flag is universally and legally recognized as the symbol of America's commitment to account for POW/MIAs.
The organization continues to represent the many families of those still missing and unaccounted for and to hold the DPAA and U.S. Government accountable to their promises to pursue and expand their efforts globally while primarily focusing on Vietnam War Missing.
The challenges of finding, recovering, and identifying the remains of U.S. military personnel are daunting with inhospitable terrain, international conflicts and the passage of time just some of the obstacles faced. Regardless of those obstacles, the personnel of the DPAA and hundreds of other volunteers work to makes sure no one is forgotten.
