Navy concludes members of former Iraqi regime know whereabouts of missing U.S. pilot (Speicher)

Associated Press

U.S. Navy pilot Capt. Michael "Scott" Speicher, above, was shot down over Iraq in January 1991. A Navy report concludes members of the former Iraqi government "know the whereabouts" of the officer.

WASHINGTON – A Navy pilot shot down over Iraq in January 1991 may have been captured by Iraqi forces, and members of the former Iraqi government "know the whereabouts" of the officer, the Navy has concluded.

A Navy board of inquiry concluded that there is no credible evidence that Capt. Michael "Scott" Speicher is dead, and it reaffirmed his official status as "missing/captured," according to the board's final report.

The board also recommended that the Pentagon work with the State Department, the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad and the Iraqi government to "increase the level of attention and effort inside Iraq" to resolve the question of Speicher's fate.

Navy Secretary Gordon England approved the report on Wednesday, according to Lt. Erin Bailey, a Navy spokeswoman.

The Iraqi government under President Saddam Hussein maintained from the start that Speicher perished at the site where his F/A-18 fighter jet crashed in the desert. No evidence to contradict that has surfaced since the fall of Baghdad in April 2003, but the new Navy inquiry concluded there was no credible evidence of his death, either.

"In view of the above findings, the board concludes as to the current whereabouts and status of the person that the person missing/captured," the report said. A copy of the report was provided to The Associated Press.

After the fall of Baghdad, a team of U.S. investigators searched for evidence of Speicher's fate, but reported finding nothing conclusive.

The board of inquiry noted that years after the shootdown, which happened on the opening night of the 1991 Gulf War, the Iraqi government turned over a flight suit and other items associated with Speicher's aircraft.

That fact "leads us to conclude that elements of the former Iraqi regime know the whereabouts of Captain Speicher," the report said.


	Advertisement

The board of inquiry also said that a March 2005 U.S. intelligence report on the Speicher case contained unanswered questions, and it recommended that a POW/MIA analytical cell continue its efforts to resolve those questions. It did not provide details on this, noting that the March report is classified secret.

The Navy has changed its position on Speicher's status over the years. Hours after his plane went down, the Pentagon declared him killed in action. Ten years later, the Navy changed his status to MIA, citing an absence of evidence that he had died. In October 2002, the Navy switched his status to "missing-captured," although it has never said what evidence it had that he was in captivity.

A Pentagon team assigned to search for evidence of Speicher after the fall of Baghdad completed its efforts in May 2004. In congressional testimony shortly afterward, Marine Brig. Gen. Joseph J. McMenamin, who led the search team, said all in-country leads regarding the pilot's fate had been exhausted.

McMenamin also said, however, that some leads could not be fully pursued because of the security threat from the Iraq insurgency. Another problem, he said, was that nomadic Bedouin tribesmen who may have information of value are difficult to find. And some who might have information about Speicher may be intimidated by the threat of retribution by members of the former Saddam regime who are still at large.

Excerpt from: "Joint Tactics, Techniques,
and Procedures
for Combat Search
and Rescue"

5. Execution (me: of a combat search and rescue)

a. Authentication of Isolated Personnel.
Because CSAR assets are extremely
vulnerable during the recovery phase, isolated
personnel will not normally be recovered
until their identity has been verified.
Effective authentication methods include
ISOPREP data, theater code words, and visual
signals.

• Isolated Personnel Report. Each
person subject to action in and over
hostile territory will provide individual
authentication data on an ISOPREP.
Detailed procedures for use of the
ISOPREP card can be found in Appendix
D, “ISOPREP Data Collection Checklist
and Procedures.” During combat,
individuals should review their
ISOPREP card prior to each mission.
Completed forms are classified
CONFIDENTIAL and are normally kept
on file with the individual’s unit until
requested by the RCC or JSRC.
Commanders should establish
procedures to ensure that accurate
ISOPREP data can be immediately
provided through secure means to the
JSRC, RCC, or other authorized support
agency, as appropriate. Commanders
should also ensure that JSRC and RCC
have been provided 24-hour contact
procedures to obtain ISOPREP
information. All subordinate or attached
unit personnel should be familiar with
ISOPREP procedures.

• Theater Code Words. The JSRC and
joint or multinational intelligence
agencies should develop standardized
theater codes and symbols for CSAR
purposes. These usually are in the form
of a CSAR word, letter, number, color of
the day, week, or month, and are
published in the CSAR SPINS found in
the ATO. For units not in the ATO, the
JSRC must send this information by other
means. Individual authentication
phrases, numbers, and descriptions are
recorded on the individual’s ISOPREP
card. Locally developed authentication
codes should be minimized but, if used,
should be forwarded to the RCC or JSRC
once a person becomes isolated.

• Visual Signals. In some circumstances,
visual (ground-to-air) signals may be
the best (or only) way to communicate
with CSAR forces. Information on
theater ground-to-air signals should also
be available in the ATO CSAR SPINS.
Isolated personnel can use ground-to-air
signals to notify search forces of their
location when other means of
communications are not practical or
available. Additionally, ground-to-air
signals such as flares or smoke generators
can assist rescue forces in the objective
area to determine the survivor’s exact
location. Signal mirrors and flares are
useful in the process of identifying and
locating isolated personnel.

End excerpt: Does that explain it?

Regards,

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.