The dignified transfer
A silence hung under an overcast sky as a team of Army soldiers slowly emerged from the large gray C-5M Super Galaxy aircraft. They walked at walking pace at a smooth and steady pace. Their eyes remained focused forward.
The flag-draped transfer cases were held at the same height, with the weight distributed evenly among the six soldiers carrying out a so-called 'no-fail mission'.
President Biden stood with a solemn expression on his face next to Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III and Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr., the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The American commander in chief, who often ends his speeches with 'may God protect our troops', had now witnessed the second dignified handover of his presidency.
Sergeant William Jerome Rivers, Specialist Kennedy Ladon Sanders and Specialist Breonna Alexsondria Moffett were killed Sunday at a remote US outpost in Jordan in what the Pentagon said was a drone strike by an Iranian-backed militia.
I have witnessed dozens of dignified transfers as a former Air Force autopsy photographer assigned to the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. The process is purposefully methodical, but it doesn't make it any easier for anyone, especially the families of fallen service members. At the height of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, when I was stationed there, we were providing several dignified transfers a week. These three Army Reserve soldiers were the first American casualties of the current conflict in the Middle East.
After the flag-draped transfer cases were ceremonially removed from the aircraft, they were driven to the medical examiner's unit for a full autopsy to confirm the cause and manner of death. Items that the fallen soldiers had with them when they died are collected, organized and photographed. These often include things like uniforms, dog tags, wallet-sized photos, wedding rings, and letters from loved ones.
After the autopsy, the remains of the soldiers are transferred to another location and prepared for burial. All military personnel who die while on active duty have the option of burial at Arlington National Cemetery, but the decision is up to their family members.
Before being moved into position to witness the handover on the tarmac, relatives of the deceased soldiers met with Mr. Biden in a private room — a space intended to be a more intimate setting, closed off to the news media and the public. where they could mourn together.