Arlington cemetery is that away, assholes.
Fucking disgraceful.
The Air Force came in for heavy criticism Thursday over its handling of the remains of America’s war dead, including complaints that it has not been upfront about the extent of the problem.
The criticism came after the service said it had dumped cremated partial remains of at least 274 troops into a Virginia landfill — far more than previously acknowledged.
……The revelation on the landfill adds to the gruesome narrative that has unfolded since the Air Force announced last month that an investigation found “gross mismanagement” at its mortuary at Dover, Del., the first stop on American soil for fallen troops coming home from Iraq and Afghanistan. That investigation said that among other problems, small body parts of U.S. troops had been lost on two occasions.
On the separate issue of sending remains to a dump, the Air Force had previously said it didn’t know how many troops’ remains had been disposed of that way, they implied that it was small, and they said they couldn’t provide a number without a massive and lengthy examination of records.
Officials called a late afternoon press conference Thursday to explain themselves after The Washington Post reported in Thursday editions that the number was 976 fragments of remains from 274 troops.
“We regret any additional grief to families that past practices may have caused,” Lt. Gen. Darrell D. Jones, deputy chief of staff for manpower, told reporters, emphasizing that the practice has ended.
In a practice halted three years ago, the Air Force sent to the landfill cremated body parts recovered from the battlefield after other remains had already been identified and returned to the family.
……The investigation of Dover’s mortuary from May 2010 to March 2011 confirmed allegations by three Dover whistle-blowers that pieces of body parts from the remains of U.S. troops killed in Afghanistan were lost on two occasions — in April 2009 and July 2009. It also said that in January 2010 a protruding arm bone of a dead Marine was sawed off in order to fit his remains into his uniform for viewing.
The Air Force disciplined — but did not fire — three senior supervisors there and Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has ordered a review of that decision.
Davis said the Air Force took a long time to investigate, “tried to figure out how to spin the facts so they wouldn’t look so bad, then made sure everybody had their talking points.”
“We absolutely want the Defense Department and Congress to get actively involved to make sure that those who are responsible for violating regulations and policies are held accountable,” the VFW spokesman said.
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/12/08/air-force-faces-criticism-for-handling-troop-remains/
I don’t give a shit where or how the remains were recovered. Do DNA testing, notify the families, and ask how they want their loved ones’ remains handled. This is gross misconduct and disrespect of the worst kind. Dover is usually the first stop for fallen troops on their way to their final resting place, and the assclowns at the facility seem to have a serious case of depraved indifference.
The Air Force Secretary needs to clean house.
If you’re interested in dropping Dover AFB mortuary a line, here’s the contact information:
Point of Contact
Air Force Mortuary Affairs Operations Public Affairs
The Charles C. Carson Center for Mortuary Affairs
116 Purple Heart Drive
Dover AFB, DE 19902
Comcl 302-677-2275
DSN 445-2275
email: afmao.pa@us.af.mil
Secretary of the Air Force Michael Donley
Secretary of the Air Force
Office of Public Affairs
Engagement Division
1690 Air Force Pentagon
Washington, DC 20330
(703) 695-9664 (Tel)
(703) 693-9601 (Fax)
They’ll certainly hear from me.