Refining Our Recoveries: Distribution of Possible Life Support Equipment at an F-4D aircraft crash site in Laos

Summary

This is a poster submission presented at the 2022 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) is tasked with the recovery and identification of missing U.S. personnel from past conflicts. Recovery efforts are a continuing joint U.S./host-nation process for more than two decades in Southeast Asia. This case study reviews distribution of Life-Support Equipment (LSE) from multiple investigations and excavations of an F-4D aircraft crash site in Laos. Approximately 80,000 square meters (m2) over varying topography has been investigated, including block excavation of 5,049 m2 over the course of eight recovery missions. Possible LSE, directly associated with the missing personnel, was recovered from 118 excavation units, multiple surveys, and unexploded ordnance (UXO) clearing activities. Over 150 pieces of possible LSE have been recovered to date, however, this 1969 loss of two USAF crewmen remains unresolved. This poster seeks to identify evidence distribution patterns to guide future investigations towards a successful recovery of human remains leading ultimately to legal identifications.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• 2022 SHA Poster Submissions   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2022

Keywords

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology