Page 7 - Aerotech News and Review, April 30, 2021

High Desert Hangar Stories
Repatriating the Fallen: American heroes come home

by Bob Alvis The American dead in World War II numbered around 280,000.
special to Aerotech News When it was all said and done, the families of 171,539 American
Soldiers took the government up on their offer and had their loved
Many times when I look for a story to share, I tend to shy away ones brought home. Those left behind were moved from tempo-
if it looks like it could be a bit too depressing, but there does come rary graves into private cemeteries or national cemeteries over-
a time when those stories pull at my heartstrings. seas, maintained by the American Battle Monuments Commission.
As we approach Memorial Day, it seems like an appropriate At the beginning of the program, it was stated that the Army
time to put in perspective what the feelings of our nation were would not label the remains “cargo,” but as passengers. They were
at the end of World War II, and how far our government went to on the passenger list, followed by the word “deceased,” aboard
make sure every soldier had the right to come home to family, Army Transportation Corps ships that brought the dead from
even if they were dead. overseas. This status also applied aboard mortuary rail cars. The
Walking around Lancaster Cemetery, I’m very aware of two Army paid the railroads a special reduced fare for each repatriated
soldiers at rest there who were killed in combat in the Pacific. casualty, and the regular fare for guards and military escorts, as with
Many times I have stood at those graves to pay my respects but any troop movement.
never realized the massive effort it took to repatriate those who Congress gave the Army until Dec. 31, 1951, to finish repa-
had died on foreign shores and what it took just to bring these triation, including search, recovery, identification, transport and
two heroes home. burial. This global project to return the dead from 86 countries
Public Law 383, enacted May 16, 1946, authorized the U.S. occupied more than 18,000 personnel at its peak and was accom-
Army to spend $200 million to repatriate GI’s, Sailors and Ma- plished on time and under budget.
rines as well as civilian federal employees who died abroad be- When all is said and done, it was only two groups that made this
tween Sept. 3, 1939, and June 30, 1946. Most nations buried their all possible when it came to the logistics of this bold project: the
casualties where they died. The United States offered next of kin United States Army and the American Railroads.
the option of bringing their dead home. As the remains were loaded aboard ships 8,000 at a time over-
seas, they would sail to America and
arrive at two ports: one in Oakland,
Calif., the other in Brooklyn, N.Y.
Each casket was inspected and iden- the remains all the way to the hometown were different from the
tity was checked as they were un- guards that would ride the train. Together, they were a special lot
loaded from the ships. From there, of individuals that were called upon to help with this massive un-
military personnel would send the dertaking. The military required escorts of equal rank and service
remains to 15 distribution centers for each deceased for the journey from the distribution centers to
across the country. Local trains home. For entire trains of mortuary cars, a commissioned officer
would then transport the deceased to would be designated a train commander with three to four ad-
local stations, to be handed off to the ditional guards assigned.
local mortuary. The deceased were The Escorts accompanying remains on the final leg of a sol-
loaded aboard special mortuary rail dier’s journey had a special role, as the only government repre-
cars and checked off again against sentative to have face-to-face contact with the next of kin. Each
the special passenger lists. At each was picked from a pool of volunteers — many of them combat
step in the journey an armed guard veterans asked to reenlist specifically for this mission, to assure
accompanied the remains, which that someone of the same service branch, race, sex and equal or
were never left outside. higher rank accompanied each deceased. Escorts underwent five
In May 1947, the Army Trans- weeks of training, including advice from psychiatrists on what to
portation Corps took delivery of expect and how to respond to reactions and questions. A training
118 specially modified mortuary
cars from the American Car and film produced, called “Your Proudest Duty,” says it all. While
Foundry shops at Wilmington, Del. traveling with remains, personnel were assigned coach or sleeper
Equipped with special roller systems space (depending on a trip’s duration) and were forbidden to con-
and small doors to accommodate the sume alcohol. The Army initially feared that the escorts’ presence
large number of returning caskets, would disturb families but in the end, the escorts were found to be
they performed their task perfectly. one of the program’s greatest assets.
The escorts that would accompany One aspect of this journey was that the remains would always
be covered with an American flag whenever the casket could be
seen by the public. The escorts would remove the flag while the
casket was in the baggage car and redrape the casket upon arrival
at the final destination. Each escort also carried a new flag for the
funeral; blank rounds for the graveside firing party, and reimburse-
ment forms for the family and funeral director.
There is so much more to the details of this program that I
would like to share that would make us all proud at the way Amer-
ica dealt with this overwhelming task, and how it was done with
dignity and respect by all those along the journey of an American
soldier coming home for the last time. Mortuary trains were just
a part of the effort to repatriate World War II dead, but they were
the element most visible to Americans. In an era when passenger
train travel was widespread and train stations prominent, these
conspicuous funeral cars served as a sobering reminder of the real
cost of World War II.
This coming month, we will once again gather at our cemeteries
to honor our fallen dead from all wars. We here in the Antelope
Valley have always made it a priority to take a few minutes to pay
our respects to those who were lost in defense of our sacred ideals
that make up our country. In a small way, we are just another part
of a soldier’s long journey home. This Memorial Day, I will visit
those two graves at Lancaster Cemetery. I will remember what
our nation did to bring these two young men back to rest among
the citizens of the town they called home.
Respect …
Courtesy photographs

Aerotech News and Review
April 30, 2021 www.aerotechnews.com ........ facebook.com/aerotechnewsandreview 7