396
June 2016
PHOTOGRAMMETRIC ENGINEERING & REMOTE SENSING
A N I N T E R V I E W
Laboratory in the US, undergoing identification. The
cooperation between foreign civilians and search groups is
creating new possibilities for recoveries of unknowns
How have new technologies helped in recovery missions?
GIS has been instrumental. No one, until now, has
endeavored to put together a database for “unknown”
recovered MIA’s. We read the original file and extract 26
data points; date of the loss or earliest/latest possible day,
where remains have been found and what type, country,
nearest city, GPS location, then put that in a data format.
We can now filter loss by date, location, etc.
We then compare the historical information on unit
movement. This information comes from the morning
reports which has the initial unit location and number of
men. Then we compare the information from the morning
report for the next day. With this information we can plot
the unit’s movement and see if anyone was lost during the
24-hour period. If someone was, we often can estimate an
approximate location. This gives us a visual indication
of where remains were found. If remains have been
recovered in that area we can use the GIS information and
the information obtained from the morning reports to try
to determine the unit the individual was with.
We are aware of other new technologies that could be
used but we have never used them. For example:
• Side scan sonar is great for sunken objects. The US
Navy will not pursue wrecks containing the remains
of navy personnel. Other services will pursue these
sites. Side scan sonar is very useful because it will
give us an image very similar to a photo.
• Lidar is a technique which uses a laser to determine
distance from an object and the elevation and
structure of the object. It is capable of defining
small changes in terrain and can be used to identify
manmade structures such as aircraft. It can be used
in covering wide areas by aerial searching.
• SAR- Syntheticaperture radar isaveryhighresolution
radar which is able to penetrate jungle vegetation,
and is able to create 2D and 3D representations of
objects. Like lidar, it can be used in aerial searches.
• Magnetic resonance technique can be used to identify
specific metals in an area through aerial searches,
but are very expensive, costing as much as $5,000 per
square mile of an aerial search.
Have there been instances where recovery was not an
option?
Yes, there was one person I talked to whose father was a
pilot, and who went down in the Adriatic Sea in 6,000 feet
of water. We know when it went down, we know where
it is but it’s not going to be recovered, not in 6,000 feet of
water. I found information on the last moments before he
crashed, from witnesses. The son, even though he knew
there was no chance of recovery, was grateful because I
was able to give him more information than he had before.
Are all of your cases combat related?
I’m working on a case involving State Department
personnel. In August 1969, a Navy airplane was flying
from Santiago, Chile to Buenos Aires, Argentina with
State Department and military dependents on board,
a Navy crew of four, and a total of 12 passengers. They
got into a bad storm and crashed in the mountains. It
has been difficult to obtain information. We have an idea
where the plane is, who was on board, however recovery
has been difficult because if falls outside of the realm of
what we normally work with. The DPAA is not allowed
by their charter to search for non-combat losses, though
they were very helpful in introducing us to other agencies
of the US Government, all of whom denied responsibility
for searching for the site of the crash. These included 7
or 8 different agencies, and the House Armed Services
Committee, which also declined to support us in the effort.
ASPRS helped find someone who would take on this
project, and we are grateful for that. We sent photos
and asked for help with photo analysis. We need help
determining what are natural rock formations versus what
could be wreckage from an airplane crash. If we can get a
definite location, we may be able to plan for a recovery of
remains of the crew and passengers.
Why do you continue to help?
I feel very much called to do this. As a former military
officer, who was touched by MIA’s during Vietnam, this is
a way to keep serving and to do something to help. In my
book
Courtesies of the Heart
there was an individual who
had such a profound sense of honor and duty it lead him
to not only bury William Lewis’s remains but to care for
the grave for 28 years. He knew that this individual was
important to someone somewhere. This courtesy of the
heart is what has lead me to pursue answers on behalf of
the missing and their families.
For more information on the MIA Reovery Network or
Ken’s book
Courtesies of the Heart
, please visit https://
miarecoverynetwork.com.
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