Christopher Michel is the CEO of Military Advantage, a company committed to serving the military community. Though Military.com, the company connects its 2 million members to all the benefits of military service. Prior to founding Military Advantage, Chris served as a Naval Flight Officer in the United States Navy. While on active duty, Chris flew as a P-3 Tactical Coordinator in support of operations Desert Shield, Deny Flight, and Bosnian Sharp Guard. Following his operational tour, Chris worked in the Pentagon as Aide to the Chief of the Naval Reserve. Chris currently serves as a Director of the Navy Memorial Foundation, a Trustee of the USS Arizona Memorial Fund of the National Park Foundation and an honorary board member for TAPS, Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors.
"Captain Speicher's status has been officially changed to Missing / Captured" was the news headline. All I heard was "Captain Speicher" -- "Captain?" I thought. "Isn't he a Lieutenant Commander? Has it been long enough for him to have advanced that far?"
Unfortunately, the answer is yes.
In fact, it's been 11 long, excruciating years since then Lieutenant Commander Speicher was shot down over Iraq -- enough for him to be promoted twice, his wife to remarry, and for his official status to change from KIA to MIA and then, again, to Missing/Captured. In my book, it's been way too long without some definitive answers.
Iraq claims he did not survive the crash -- but there is little supporting evidence. Investigators believe that Scott ejected from the aircraft. According to the Navy, "Analysis of the wreckage concluded Captain Speicher survived the initial damage to his aircraft, initiated the ejection sequence, jettisoned the canopy, and ejected before the crash." In 1995, during an inspection of the crash site, the Iraqi's turned over Speicher's flight suit, claiming it was found near the crash. The Iraqi's could not account for why there was a flight suit but no aviator. A detailed analysis of the flight suit indicates that it could not have been worn by an aviator during ground impact. Even if Scott did not survive, it's hard to imagine that Saddam did not recover the body.
There is more … An Iraqi defector claimed that 11 years ago he drove a wounded American aviator matching Speicher's general description to the hospital. In fact, he was able to identify Speicher from a group of photos. He also passed a lie detector test. It's hard to know if these accounts are accurate. It does seem clear, however, that Iraq is not telling us everything they know. Although it is hard to imagine that Iraq would want to keep Scott alive for years, there is ample evidence to indicate otherwise. In 1998, for example, Saddam Hussein released Hossein Lashgari, an Iranian pilot, after he was held for 17 years.1
I applaud the work of "Friends Working to Free Scott Speicher, Inc." Through their commitment and dedication, Scott has not been forgotten. Enlisting the help of Secretary of the Navy Gordon England and Senator Robert Smith, they have been working tirelessly on the Speicher Bill (providing asylum in America for natives of the Middle East who deliver any Gulf War POW/MIA to the United States). On October 29th, President Bush signed the Speicher Bill into law. This law is not the end of the struggle for Scott's freedom; it's only the beginning.
Each time I see a somber-black POW/MIA flag, I am reminded of our commitment to "leave no one behind." If there is even a small chance that he is alive, shouldn't we do more? Every day I hear about U.S. pressure on Iraq to allow UN weapons inspectors access -- just once, I'd like us to put the same effort and resolve into freeing one of our own: Captain Scott Speicher, United States Navy.
Notes:
1. LON WAGNER AND AMY WATERS YARSINSKE, "Dead or Alive?", The Virginian Pilot (January 3, 2002)
