Air Force Pilot Missing in Action From Vietnam War is Identified

[darrels joy]

Air Force Pilot Missing in Action From Vietnam War is Identified

The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office 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 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. and 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. and 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.

[Jerry D]

Welcome Home 1st Lt. James L. Hull USAF and RIP you deserve the rest and peacful slumber of being home.

[the humper]

based in Hawaii, do one helluva job, WORLD WIDE!!!!!!!

[DMZ-LT]

Feb 19th , 1971 I was only a few miles from his crash site in RVN. Sids son was on a recovery team a few years ago and recovered a soldier. 35 years have gone by and our children are bringing home our brothers. RIP

[VIETNAM 1968]

Welcome Home 1st Lieutenant James L. Hull. May you finally REST IN PEACE in your Homeland where you belong.

Your last mission is finally over and your country now welcomes you home. You served in an honorable manner and did your best to defend the rest of us. You can now sleep in eternal rest on American Soil.

WELCOME HOME BROTHER.

To the rest of my Vietnam Veteran Brothers and Sisters I also wish you a heart felt:

WELCOME HOME


VIETNAM 1968

[SEATJERKER]

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...Hand Salute,...




...TU,...

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...May He Reast in Peace',...

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[Stick]

The last word on the bracelet on my wrist is "Laos" and for all of these years our country has denied that we ever had American forces within that country but the commanders of those forces who were under attack from supplies that came through Laos along the Ho-Chi-Mihn trail decided that there was a need to shut the trail down or at least restrict it's use as much as possible by making the trail a hazardous route to travel. Many troops were lost attacking that trail and many troops were lost by the logistics that came accross it.
Welcome home Lt. Hull and thank you for your service to your country. You probably gave the ultimate sacrifice saving my ass. I am proud to offer you a "Hand Salute."

[Boats]

Stick - my bracelet also has Laos March of 1970 it will be nice when all the troops are back on homeland soil. LT. Hull you've been missed "Welcome Home" we are glad you are back with us.

[SEATJERKER]

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...Col. Charles W. Burkart JR.
...USAF 13 JUN 66 Laos

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