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| Library > Air Force POW MIAs |
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Air Force Missing Persons Branch
Mission
 The branch serves as the liaison between government agencies and Air Force POW/MIA family members. Branch personnel administer the Air Force hostile and non-hostile missing persons program, and serve as a liaison between the Air Force, the U.S. government and the next of kin of all unaccounted for Air Force personnel.
The Air Force Missing Persons Branch at AFPC collects, evaluates and disseminates to next of kin and other interested government agencies all information and reports concerning aircraft crash and grave site investigations or excavations, live sightings and refugee interviews.
They operate hand in hand with the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense, International Security Affairs/Defense Prisoner of War/Missing Personnel Office, Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command, Armed Forces DNA Laboratory, the Life Science Equipment Laboratory, the U.S. Air Force Mortuary Affairs Division, the Joint Personnel Recovery Agency, and the Central Intelligence Agency. They also maintain contact with family organizations such as the National League of POW/MIA Families and the Coalition of Families of Korean and Cold War POW/MIAs. These Air Force personnel respond to casualty-related congressional and other high-level inquiries, and write advisories for the Air Force Board for Correction of Military Records.
The branch office serves as the focal point of contact for the next of kin of unaccounted-for service members from the Korean War, Cold War and the Vietnam Conflict, in addition to any current day operations. They maintain contact with about 3,500 family members. They have maintained contact with families of unaccounted-for Airmen over the years since the Korean War.
DoD Family Member Updates
Up to eight times a year, government officials meet with MIA family members who live within a 350-mile radius of major metropolitan areas across the country. These meetings are designed to address the individual needs of the family members while bringing information to their communities. Government officials also meet one-on-one with family members to discuss the details of each of their cases. About 150-200 family members and 30 government officials attend each meeting.
| 2013 Family Update Schedule |
| Date |
Location |
| January 12 |
San Diego, CA |
| February 23 |
Albuquerque, NM |
Postponed until further notice--Korea/Cold War Annual
Please contact us at 1-800-531-5501 to Register for this Family Update. The Family Updates are tailored to meet the needs of attendees representing unaccounted-for service members from past conflicts.
Please register early so that analysts may prepare to discuss your specific cases.
NOTE: These government meetings are only for family of unaccounted-for service members from past conflicts.
 Defense Prisoner of War/Missing Personnel Office
Families of Americans unaccounted for from the Vietnam, Cold War and Korean War are invited to meet with officials from the Defense Prisoner of War/Missing Personnel Office for informal briefings followed by a question-and-answer period. The purpose of these updates are to provide informal forums for information exchange between United States government officials and the families of unaccounted for Americans from our nation's wars. Contact the Defense POW/Missing Personnel office for details of dates and locations.
Vietnam POW/MIA bracelet
The AFPC Missing Persons Branch is the point of contact for members of the public requesting assistance in forwarding a Vietnam POW/MIA bracelet they have worn to the service member's family. Since we cannot provide the public with private contact information on the service member or next of kin, we recommend forwarding the bracelet to the following address with a cover letter explaining the request. A Missing Persons technician will review the cover letter prior to forwarding to the service member or their family.
USAF Missing Persons Branch
550 C Street West, Suite 14
Randolph AFB, TX 78150-4716
If the Missing Persons Branch has a current address, the bracelet and letter will be forwarded to the service member or their family. It is then the service member's or family member's decision whether or not to make contact with the sender of the bracelet. Because most of our former POWs and families of accounted-for Vietnam service members are no longer in contact with our office, there is no guarantee that the bracelet will be forwarded. All bracelets that are not forwarded to the service member or their family will either be returned to the requesting concerned citizen or, if no return address is provided, included in a POW/MIA display case in the Air Force Missing Persons office at AFPC.
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Unaccounted-for military personnel statistics from the Korean, Cold and Vietnam wars as of 2012:
Total U.S. unaccounted-for: 9,773
Air Force unaccounted-for: 1,502
Korean War total: 7,965
Air Force: 908
Cold War total: 125
Air Force: 57
Southeast Asia total: 1,678
Air Force: 535
Libyan Raid
Air Force: 1
Operation Iraqi Freedom total: 4
Air Force: 1
143 Air Force identifications have been made since 2000. The search for U.S. Airmen, Soldiers, Sailors and Marines continues every day. |
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Air Force Missing Persons Branch
Monday - Friday
7:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. CST
(800) 531-5501
DSN: 665-3752
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