An honor guard was fired a 21-gun salute and F-15 Eagle fighters flew overhead in the "missing man" formation as Blassie was buried at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery in St. Louis in a ceremony presided over by the eldest sibling, Pat Blassie, a captain in the Air Force Reserve. With the invention of the polymerase chain reaction in 1985, DNA analysis moved to the forefront of forensic technologies. Unlike nuclear DNA, each cell carries more than a hundred copies of mtDNA, since each cell contains many mitochondria but only one nucleus. Prior to the identification of his remains, Blassie was the unknown service member . In the early 1990s, Blassie's family received word that his remains might be buried in the Tomb of the Unknown. How to honor unidentified remains has always been one of the great conundrums of war. The file that Vince discovered made it clear the the person who had been put in the tomb in 1984 had been far from unknown. Visit the digital memorial page of Veteran Michael Joseph Blassie where you can share stories, photos, biographies, obituaries, tributes and more. Its like the reverse of this 99pi story! You are nearing the transfer limit for memorials managed by Find a Grave. We wanted to know the rest of the story. The bones were taken to the Central Identification Laboratory in Hawaii, where officials said they were "believed to be" those of Blassie. 1894 shipwreck found in Lake Huron, confirming "powerful, tragic story" DNA samples were taken from Michaels mother Jean and his sister Judy and tested against the remains. There, a plaque holds words from the Gettysburg Address: "We can not dedicate -- we can not consecrate -- we can not hallow this ground. After hours of discussion, Jean Blassie looked at her children and said, For 26 years, we have been told that Michael was never found, according to an article in Checkpoints magazine. That day changed the Blassie family forever, she says. There was no question, the remains were Michaels. There they would rest for eight years in a file labeled X-26 until their date with destiny arrived. To Army scientists, these findings superseded any other evidence, such as documents or personal effects. (eds): Last edited on 17 February 2023, at 18:50, "Soldier In Tomb Of Unknowns May Actually Be Known", "The Vietnam Unknown Soldier Can Be Identified", "Defense.gov News Article: Vietnam Unknown's Medal of Honor Transfer Denied", "The Evolution of the Tomb of the Unknowns", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Michael_Blassie&oldid=1139961298, This page was last edited on 17 February 2023, at 18:50. They had to do more with less and that meant Michael was going to see a lot of combat. } He told her that he had been researching who was shot down on the date of Michaels death and he believed that her brothers remains were in the Tomb of the Unknowns. [3] After Blassie's family secured permission, the remains were exhumed on May 14, 1998. A 1970 graduate of the Air Force Academy, Mike qualified on the A-37B Dragonfly (Super Tweet) Cessna attack aircraft. For Mrs. Blassie, the fight to recover her sons remains took a dramatic turn during a family meeting in November 1997 at her apartment in Florissant. He basically sat on a shelf from 1972 to 1984, Patricia Blassie said. Morphological approximation presumed that one could determine personal characteristics like age and height by careful examination of bone fragments. Jean Blassie lost her son twice. They brought him home for burial in Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery near St. Louis. He served as a Tactical Aircraft Pilot and was assigned to the 8TH SPECIAL OPS SQDN, 377TH AIR BASE WING, 7TH AF. Even though he knew about the missing wallet, the head of the lab, using now outdated techniques, determined that the remains did not match Michael Blassies physical description. In Michaels case, just this once, their mission was completed. Blassie's unidentified remains were designated as the Vietnam Unknown service member by Medal of Honor recipient U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. By 1994, Patricia had risen from Airman Basic to Captain and was working in the Pentagon in Public Affairs. They petitioned the Department of Defense to open the site and conduct DNA testing, a technology that had been unavailable . What is the music played at the end of this podcast? It is very austere and moving. Signaling its determination to have its Vietnam Unknown, the Pentagon gave Webb six months to make a positive ID of X-26. Are you sure that you want to delete this photo? DNA identification had yet to advance to its current state when Blassie's remains were repatriated, and he lay in the Tomb of the Unknowns up to 1998, with visitors paying respects but unaware of his identity. Michaels younger sister, Patricia Blassie, was seven years old when her big brother with the gentle smile left for the Air Force Academy in 1966. The Blassie family wasnt in attendance. One of them told her once that their mission guarding the Unknowns is never really over. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Michael was no longer Unknown. "Today was a significant day for us," Blassie's brother, George Blassie said during Friday's service. Jean Blassie, mother of 1st Lt. Michael Blassie, 1998. In May 1998, the remains were disinterred for mitochondrial DNA "fingerprinting." After his remains were identified by DNA testing in 1998, they were reburied at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery in St. Louis County, Missouri. Major James Connally, Blassies flight commander, described the tragic incident in a letter to Michaels parents: Mikes plane was hit and began streaming fuel. Through these efforts, they reviewed evidence that suggested the Vietnam War Unknown was likely Air Force 1st Lt. Michael Joseph Blassie, a pilot who had been shot down in 1972. DNA is also stored in tiny, energy-producing structures in the cells, called mitochondria. The ARVN turned the remains and the other crash site items over to Captain William C. Parnell, who was then serving as an operations officer at An Loc. Michael flew as an Air Commando, probably running covert missions into Laos and Cambodia, in addition to his official duties as forward air controller and counterinsurgency operations pilot in South Vietnam. Everyone was free to mourn in their own way. In honor of the Coast Guard's birthday, we've put together a quiz on the service's history and traditions. This flower has been reported and will not be visible while under review. But perhaps Im speaking out of turn. Historical Person Search Search Search Results Results Michael Joseph Blassie (1948 - 1972) Try FREE for 14 days Try FREE for 14 days How do we create a person's profile? "We were all so proud of him. Air Force jets fly over Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery during the burial of Lt. Michael Blassie, July 11. Records can get damaged or destroyed, and post-mortem materials can be affected by decomposition, body fragmentation and exposure to heat. The goal was to schedule the ceremony before Election Day 1984, which is why Memorial Day, rather than Veterans Day, was selected. CBS Evening News went public with the explosive story in a broadcast on January 19, 1998. This is especially true for people like me that have no familial association with the military. The body will be cremated and her remains buried at Calvary Cemetery with her parents and grandparents. From a computer genius to a popular sitcom star, talented women have made their mark in the U.S. military. Process of elimination might sounded like it could have worked, until you take in account of the 2000+ MIA service members in that war. They were completely cut off from the rest of the world. They talked to anyone they could find who was involved in the unknown selection process, and when they felt they were ready, they handed over their findings to Patricia Blassie. memorial page for 1LT Michael Joseph Blassie (4 Apr 1948-11 May 1972), Find a Grave Memorial ID 4245, citing Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery, Lemay . During my only visit to the Tomb of the Unknowns, during the changing of the guard, I witnessed what may be a rare event. As an Unknown, Michael Blassies bone fragments were put in storage at the Hawaii laboratory. Out of the fog of war comes another version of the incident, one in which Michaels Dragonfly inverts upside down, and Michael ejects from the stricken aircraft. Today he comes home.". 1st Lt. Michael Joseph Blassie was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for his heroism and extraordinary achievement while participating in aerial flight. Family members linked to this person will appear here. Those vacuum-sealed samples now number some 8 million, sitting ready for a self-reference analysis in case of battlefield death. By the time his mother found out where he was, his remains were entombed in the Tomb of the Unknowns in Washington. She suffered a stroke in 2004 and recently was diagnosed with pneumonia, her family said Thursday. High in t the middle 30s. That just couldnt be. Blassie, said Ted, I believe your son is in the Tomb of the Unknown.. He had been shot down near An Loc, Vietnam, in 1972.. How much do you know about the founding of the U.S. Army? Michael Blassie was therefore ruled out as a possible match. Dubbed the super-tweet it was designed to fly low over its target. A system error has occurred. (She would retire in 2018 as a full-bird Colonel). Im a former Soldier from Australia, and a Tour Guide around Europe, and i immediately thought of all the different changing of the guards, and unknown Tombs i have visited. Major Johnie Webb was the officer in charge of the Armys Central Identification Laboratory in Hawaii. When family members received word that his remains might be buried in the Tomb of the Unknown, they petitioned the Department of Defense to open the site and conduct previously unavailable DNA testing. It was a South Vietnamese Army patrol that scoured the crash site and came back with six bone fragments, a Beacon radio, two compasses, an American flag, a parachute, remnants of a pistol holder, a one-man life raft, fragments of a flight suit, a wallet with family pictures, and an ID that read: 1st Lt. Blassie, Michael Joseph., Air Force equipment found with Michael Blassie: dog tag chain fragment, signal marker pouch, match holder, parachute survival guide, and ammunition pouch (Blassie family). I thought this is the best example of internet conspiracy garbage Ive seen to date, says Vince Gonzales, a reporter for CBS Denver who came across the story three years later in 1997. A fellow airman saw tracer rounds directed toward Mikes A-37. The nature of combat in Vietnam and advances in forensic medicine had made it difficult for officials to bury a Vietnam unknown. The unknowns from World War I and World War II are another story for now, but anything is possible. Dad set up a little memorial in the basement and would go down there all the time and just sit., When something like this happens in a family, [it] can bring a family together or tear it apart. Please enter your email address and we will send you an email with a reset password code. Last chance! The sponsor of a memorial may add an additional. The date, location of the crash, bone fragments from the body and remnants of his flight suit and parachute led to the conclusion that it was Michael. Michael Blassies skeletal chart, VBC Happy Hour screenshot, 2021. They were the remains of Air Force 1st Lt. Michael Joseph Blassie, who was shot down over An Loc on May 11, 1972. . That simple, tragic explanation would be the only one that Blassies parents ever heard for 26 years. More disturbingly, they also suggested a concerted effort to conceal any links between Blassie and the remains. Tony. She and her four children met to try to figure out what to do. ). The soldiers anonymity would allow each person who came to the grave to project whatever was most important to them onto the mystery. If we were confident enough the remains belonged to a US soldier that we put them in the tomb of the unknown, wouldnt process of elimination lead us to this conclusion? Failed to delete memorial. With DNA identification being used and hearing that there are no unknowns from Vietnam and that they are working currently on unknowns from the Korean war, I though, How wonderful that there will never again be an unknown soldier, everyone will be eventually brought home. She met George Blassie, a butcher, at a ballroom dance. They were a match and Michael Blassies remains were returned to his family. He thought about how terrible it was that so many people were essentially being forgotten they deserved better than that. Prior to the identification of his remains, Blassie was the unknown service member from the Vietnam War buried at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery. The Blassie family watches as their family member Michael, is unloaded from a C-130 Hercules cargo plane, July 10. The music is an original piece by our talented composer, Sean Real. Michael Joseph Blassie, the oldest of five children of a St. Louis meat cutter, entered the Air Force Academy in 1966 and received his officer's commission in June 1970. They must have never actually been there. The Pentagon had kept them in the dark, probably with the good intention of not getting the familys hopes up until Michaels identity could be confirmed. display: none; Lawsuits claim it wrecked their teeth. .component--type-recirculation .item:nth-child(5) { First Lieutenant Michael Joseph Blassie (April 4, 1948 - May 11, 1972) was an officer in the United States Air Force. The Blassies went public, calling for DNA tests to prove that the remains were Michaels. This memorial has been copied to your clipboard. Please enter valid email address to continue. Think you're a Top Gun at aircraft identification? All photos uploaded successfully, click on the Done button to see the photos in the gallery. He was made one., Whenever Patricias mother received criticism for requesting Michaels removal from the Tomb of the Unknown, she would simply shrug and say, Hes not your son.. A decade later, however, questions began to arise about the identity of this unknown soldier. She said then-President Ronald Reagan had wanted to add a Vietnam War soldier to the Tomb of the Unknowns, joining the unknown soldiers from World War I and II and the Korean War. Articles in U.S. Please complete the captcha to let us know you are a real person. After Blassie's family secured permission . Sorry! No other MIA or KIA even remotely near the An Lc location would have possessed a life raft, parachute, and pistol holster. First Lieutenant Michael Joseph Blassie, 24, was shot down over South Vietnam in 1972 and presumed dead. I want to bring my son home.. I think that barring a complete abolition of war, this is a small consolation. I thought you might like to see a memorial for 1LT Michael Joseph Blassie I found on Findagrave.com. He knew morphological approximation was a flawed identification technique, and he suspected that someday, X-26 might be identified, especially given the personal effects and documents associated with the bone fragments. Follow him on Facebook. Captain Parnell wrapped the remains, and the other items found at the crash site, in plastic and held them overnight. Michael Blassie The Final Mission. (2006): Identification of Human Remains. By the time the package arrived in Hawaii, the wallet and ID were missing, presumed stolen during storage or transit. Id left school early that day, and I looked out the window when I heard a car door slam. In celebration of the Marine Corps' birthday, Military.com has put together this Marine Corps history quiz. At first, there were a lot of Unknowns to work with. They were just looking out for him until he could go home. You can watch his conversation with Colonel Patricia Blassie on A Veterans Story on the VBCs YouTube channel, youtube.com/veteransbreakfastclub. Yet he was found five months after he was shot down and then buried without our knowledge in the Tomb of the Unknowns. Translation on Find a Grave is an ongoing project. You have permission to edit this article. Michael Blassies C-37 Dragonfly was part of that defense flying support for allied South Vietnamese ground units. Now that DNA samples are taken from everyone who joins the U.S. Armed Forces, there may never be another American "unknown soldier.". Prior to the identification of his remains, Blassie was the unknown service member from the Vietnam War buried at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery. However, analysis at the time suggested that the remains were not a compelling match to Blassie's age and height. It may be that forensic science has reached the point where there will be no other unknowns in any war. The year after Michael Blassies death, Congress directed the Department of Defense to select the remains of an Unknown Vietnam servicemember to be interred in Arlington National Cemeterys Tomb of the Unknown. After Blassie's family secured permission, the remains of Blassie were exhumed on May 14, 1998. The President also acted as next of kin to the unidentified Blassie by accepting the interment flag at the end of the ceremony. Its just an outsiders way of honoring all of your sacrifices. Blassie dropped in low for a bombing run on attacking forces when enemy anti-aircraft fire boomed from the ground. Find records of Michael Blassie Birth records Marriage records Divorce records They brought him home for burial in Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery near St. Louis. Post-Dispatch file photo, Workers cover the Tomb of the Unknowns in Arlington Cemetery in Arlington, Va., on May 13, 1998, in anticipation of the exhumation of the remains of the Vietnam unknown. After petitioning the United States Government for permission, his family had his body exhumed. Required fields are marked *, 99% Invisible The remains and associated materials were eventually turned over to the U.S. Army Central Identification Laboratory, Hawaii for analysis and identification. I dont care what happened, but the documents showed that patrol went into Michaels crash site to find him, and they did. His 138th combat mission ended near An Loc, South Vietnam, when the wing was blasted off his plane by enemy fire. We have set your language to Sign up for our newsletter to keep reading. From there, the remains and effects went to Camp Samae San, Thailand, where the US ran a search and recovery center. One of Calhoons duties, in the midst of all this chaos, was to call in airstrikes. well, that was simply too much to believe. Make sure that the file is a photo. To use this feature, use a newer browser. Found more than one record for entered Email, You need to confirm this account before you can sign in. At the request of Blassie's family, the Department of Defense exhumed the remains from the Vietnam Unknown's crypt on May 14, 1998. He died in 1991. Blassie, a 24-year-old first lieutenant, had been missing since May 11, 1972, when his A-37 fighter was shot down over An Loc during a bombing run. The Medal of Honor bestowed upon him as the Vietnam Unknown was not transferred to Blassie after his remains were identified. [3][4] A CBS News report in January 1998 subsequently made the same claim. Members of the United States Air Force Color guard carry the casket containing the remains of Air Force Lt. Michael Blassie on July 10, 1998 at Scott Air Force Base. Privacy Policy & Terms of Service. Human beings have copies of DNA from each biological parent, stored in the nucleus of every cell. Try again. During a tour of Vietnam, he served as a member of the 8th Special Operations Squadron. Photo by Erik M. Lunsford elunsford@post-dispatch.com. They were returned them home for a military burial. Many Vietnam veterans, President Ronald Reagan and First Lady Nancy Reagan visited Blassie as he lay in state in the U.S. Capitol. Over a quarter million people lined the route to Arlington National Cemetery. Yesterday I read an article about three WW1 soldiers buried in Copenhagen: https://www.thelocal.dk/20190305/the-little-known-story-of-the-first-world-war-soldiers-buried-in-copenhagen. DNA tests confirmed that the previously unknown soldier was, in fact, Michael Blassie. During a tour of Vietnam, he served as a member of the 8th Special Operations Squadron. On March 30, 1972, the North Vietnamese Army (NVA) launched a massive surprise attack on the South. Are you adding a grave photo that will fulfill this request? Revealing the Unknown: The Mystery of Michael Blassie | Missouri Historical Society 1st Lt. Michael Blassie was killed in action during the Vietnam War, but his remains were unrecovered because the fighting was so intense in the area where his plane crashed. An Army caisson carried his casket from the Capitol to the Memorial Amphitheater at Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day, May 28, 1984. Michael Blassie had become a cold statistic of war. The pressures of war put a premium on closing cases and moving on, getting the job done even if that meant rushing lab reports. Webb refused. It represents all soldiers who made the ultimate sacrifice for the rest of us. His body wouldnt be coming home. memorial page for 1LT Michael Joseph Blassie (4 Apr 1948-11 May 1972), Find a Grave Memorial ID 4245, citing Jefferson Barracks National . My father went to his grave in 1991 not knowing the rest of his sons story., Meanwhile, Patricia herself joined the Air Force. DNA testing was in its infancy in 1972. A 1970 graduate of the United States Air Force Academy, he served in the Vietnam War as a 1st Lieutenant the 8th Special Operations Squadron. No one doubted his commitment to the cause of POW/MIAs. or don't show this againI am good at figuring things out. I know about Ted Sampleys past, he told her, but I believe its true.. The ability to match mtDNA between related individuals, and the fact that it does not degrade as rapidly as nuclear DNA, makes it a valuable tool in the identification of human remains. Blassie, who was killed in Vietnam. The saga of the Vietnam crypt of the Tomb of the Unknown is perhaps the darkest chapter of the US Department of Defenses long-running effort to account for POW/MIAs. The government does not have the right to keep such information from the family., When I looked into all the documents and from my personal research, it was obvious that improper decisions were being made, and all of sudden Michael is the Unknown representing the missing from the Vietnam War. The president meant to assure families of soldiers with MIA status that their loved ones would not be forgotten, but his words were prescient of the Vietnam unknown's fate. This Marine Corps ' birthday, Military.com has put together a quiz on the South Reagan visited Blassie as lay! Work with of combat. in any war Michael, is unloaded from a computer genius to a sitcom... Ultimate sacrifice for the rest of us them told her once that their mission was completed played at the of. Mother of 1st Lt. 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