US military buries airmen killed in 1965 crash
By MATTHEW BARAKAT?
?By MATTHEW BARAKATMembers of the Air Force Honor Guard hold American flags to be presented to family members during a burial service for Air Force Col. Joseph Christiano, Col. Derrell B. Jeffords, Lt. Col. Dennis L. Eilers, Chieft Master Sgt. William K. Colwell, Chief Master Sgt. Arden K. Hassenger and Chief Master Sgt. Larry C. Thornton, Monday, July 9, 2012, at Arlington National Cemetery Arlington, Va. It was Christmas Eve 1965 when the Air Force plane nicknamed "Spooky" took off from Vietnam for a combat mission. The crew sent out a "mayday" signal while flying over Laos, and after that, all contact was lost. Two days of searches turned up nothing. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)
Members of the Air Force Honor Guard hold American flags to be presented to family members during a burial service for Air Force Col. Joseph Christiano, Col. Derrell B. Jeffords, Lt. Col. Dennis L. Eilers, Chieft Master Sgt. William K. Colwell, Chief Master Sgt. Arden K. Hassenger and Chief Master Sgt. Larry C. Thornton, Monday, July 9, 2012, at Arlington National Cemetery Arlington, Va. It was Christmas Eve 1965 when the Air Force plane nicknamed "Spooky" took off from Vietnam for a combat mission. The crew sent out a "mayday" signal while flying over Laos, and after that, all contact was lost. Two days of searches turned up nothing. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)
An Air Force carry team carries the casket with the remains of Air Force Col. Joseph Christiano, Col. Derrell B. Jeffords, Lt. Col. Dennis L. Eilers, Chieft Master Sgt. William K. Colwell, Chief Master Sgt. Arden K. Hassenger and Chief Master Sgt. Larry C. Thornton, during a burial service at Arlington National Cemetery Arlington, Va., Monday, July 9, 2012. It was Christmas Eve 1965 when the Air Force plane nicknamed "Spooky" took off from Vietnam for a combat mission. The crew sent out a "mayday" signal while flying over Laos, and after that, all contact was lost. Two days of searches turned up nothing. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)
This undated family photo provided by The Fry Funeral Home shows Air Force Lt. Col. Dennis Eilers who was shot down on Christmas Eve 1965 over Laos. The remains of six US airmen, including Eilers, missing in action in Vietnam since 1965 have recently been identified and will be interred in a single casket Monday, July 9, 2012, at Arlington National Cemetery. (AP Photo/Courtesy Eilers family)
This undated family photo provided by The Fry Funeral Home shows Air Force Lt. Col. Dennis Eilers who was shot down on Christmas Eve 1965 over Laos. The remains of six US airmen, including Eilers, missing in action in Vietnam since 1965 have recently been identified and will be interred in a single casket Monday, July 9, 2012, at Arlington National Cemetery. (AP Photo/Courtesy Eilers family)
Barbara Annechino is comforted by her brother Jeffrey Christiano during the burial service for their father Air Force Col. Joseph Christiano, and Col. Derrell B. Jeffords, Lt. Col. Dennis L. Eilers, Chieft Master Sgt. William K. Colwell, Chief Master Sgt. Arden K. Hassenger and Chief Master Sgt. Larry C. Thornton, Monday, July 9, 2012, at Arlington National Cemetery Arlington, Va. It was Christmas Eve 1965 when the Air Force plane nicknamed "Spooky" took off from Vietnam for a combat mission. The crew sent out a "mayday" signal while flying over Laos, and after that, all contact was lost. Two days of searches turned up nothing. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)
ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) ? Nearly 47 years after their plane went down during a combat mission over Laos, six airmen have received a burial with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery.
The ceremony that prompted a variety of reactions from the family members who were there to remember their loved ones.
The charred remains of the six airmen ? identified not through DNA matches but through dental records, personal items and other circumstantial evidence ? were buried in a single casket.
The remains are representative of six Air Force servicemen: Col. Joseph Christiano of Rochester, N.Y.; Col. Derrell B. Jeffords of Florence, S.C.; Lt. Col. Dennis L. Eilers of Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Chief Master Sgt. William K. Colwell of Glen Cove, N.Y.; Chief Master Sgt. Arden K. Hassenger of Lebanon, Ore.; and Chief Master Sgt. Larry C. Thornton of Idaho Falls, Idaho.
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