News-Press

Monday, February 24, 2003



Remains found in jungle may be Coast Guard casualty of Vietnam



HONOLULU - Nearly 35 years ago, Coast Guard Lt. Jack C. Rittichier's HH-3E Jolly Green Giant helicopter crashed on a rescue mission in the jungles of Laos.



His family and the Coast Guard haven't forgotten him. And neither have the strangers from Oahu to Florida who have kept Rittichier's name alive through the MIA bracelets they've worn for years.



The long vigil could soon be over with the recovery of remains believed to be those of the Ohio native, the first Coast Guard combat casualty of the Vietnam War and the service's only member listed as missing in action.



The Jolly Green's crew was repatriated last week to U.S. soil. The remains were taken to the U.S. Army Central Identification Laboratory, Hawaii, where specialists will attempt to make positive IDs.



The number of Americans unaccounted for from the war stands at 1,889. For those who still wear the MIA bands, the sense of connection remains strong.



For about 13 years, Frank Dekle of Kailua, Hawaii, has worn one of the MIA bracelets - metal bracelets stamped with the names of prisoners of war that were popular during the Vietnam War but are still worn by the thousands. The name on his bracelet: Jack Rittichier.



Dekle, a retired Coast Guard chief petty officer who saw duty in Vietnam in 1969 and 1970, couldn't believe it when he heard that Rittichier's remains may have been found.



"I was talking to people about him ... and all of a sudden, there he is (in the newspaper)," said Dekle.



Rittichier, an exchange pilot with the U.S. Air Force's 37th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron in Danang, was shot down in 1968 with three Air Force crew members while trying to rescue a downed Marine pilot on the Ho Chi Minh Trail just inside Laos.



"He never came back. We just never knew about him," said Dekle, 64, who removes the bracelet only when required at the Veterans Administration center where he is undergoing rehabilitation after a stroke.



Dekle's son, Frank Jr., remembers his dad buying the bracelet at an Oahu military surplus store around 1990. "It was kind of like a teammate, somebody who was in the Coast Guard," Frank Jr. said.

Coast Guard Cmdr. Richard Jackson, an MH-60 helicopter gunship pilot out of Jacksonville, said he wore a Rittichier bracelet in Operation Desert Storm and on missions everywhere from the North Pole to Antarctica.



The Navy's casualty assistance office said that if individuals want the bracelets returned to Rittichier's family, it will mail them. The address is: Department of the Navy, Navy Personnel Command (Pers-62 P), Casualty Assistance and Retired Activities Division, 5720 Integrity Drive, Millington, Tenn., 38055-6210.

This is so exciting for me, as Rittichier has been a part of my life for four years now. As soon as I learned about the repatriation, I began telling every one I knew -- and probably people I didn't know -- about it and about him. I have a bracelet for Rittichier, but it stays on my dresser next to his photo most the time, because the bracelet is too big for my little wrists.



I have been in contact with a newspaper reporter about Rittichier, and through her and others, I now have (1) the address for and (2) 'permission' to write Rittichier's widow and brothers, the latter of which desire those of us concerned about Rittichier to be at the memorial service(s) for him. Great !

Hi Stacey,



Please let us know about the memorial service (when/where) so we can attend if possible.



Thanks!



Jen

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Replying to:

This is so exciting for me, as Rittichier has been a part of my life for four years now. As soon as I learned about the repatriation, I began telling every one I knew -- and probably people I didn't know -- about it and about him. I have a bracelet for Rittichier, but it stays on my dresser next to his photo most the time, because the bracelet is too big for my little wrists.



I have been in contact with a newspaper reporter about Rittichier, and through her and others, I now have (1) the address for and (2) 'permission' to write Rittichier's widow and brothers, the latter of which desire those of us concerned about Rittichier to be at the memorial service(s) for him. Great !

I will alert you (and others) as soon as I know something, but I realize that this [the identification] can take up to 18 months. The 18 (+/-) months, I think, will be almost as long for the families as the past 34 1/2 years have been ...

--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---

Replying to:

Hi Stacey,



Please let us know about the memorial service (when/where) so we can attend if possible.



Thanks!



Jen

--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---

Replying to:

This is so exciting for me, as Rittichier has been a part of my life for four years now. As soon as I learned about the repatriation, I began telling every one I knew -- and probably people I didn't know -- about it and about him. I have a bracelet for Rittichier, but it stays on my dresser next to his photo most the time, because the bracelet is too big for my little wrists.



I have been in contact with a newspaper reporter about Rittichier, and through her and others, I now have (1) the address for and (2) 'permission' to write Rittichier's widow and brothers, the latter of which desire those of us concerned about Rittichier to be at the memorial service(s) for him. Great !