P-2V Neptune Was In Cold Storage For 42 Years  

The remains of US naval aviators, who were lost after their P-2V Neptune patrol craft crashed in Greenland more than 40 years ago, were finally returned home Aug. 17.

A 16-member recovery team headed by Naval Air Force, US Atlantic Fleet (CNAL), departed Norfolk (VA) Aug. 2 to recover the remains of aviators lost in the crash on the Kronborg Glacier in Greenland.

Capt. Tom Sparks, CNAL safety officer, led the recovery mission. Bringing the fallen service members home and closure to those families were key goals.

"I looked at it as an opportunity to do something for the family and friends," said Sparks, a 25-year career Navy aviator. "I also looked at it as an opportunity to provide closure to a Navy investigation. From a personal satisfaction standpoint, it just felt like the right thing to go back there, as an aviator, and to help a fellow shipmate and recover the known remains that are out there."

The P-2V Neptune patrol aircraft disappeared over the North Atlantic during a routine reconnaissance mission Jan. 12, 1962. The Navy initially believed the aircraft crashed at sea until August 1966, when a British geologic survey team discovered the wreckage on the glacier. One month later, the Navy sent a recovery unit to bring home the remains and destroy sensitive onboard equipment, but a two-to-three foot snow blizzard during the recovery operation limited the recovery effort. After forensic analysis of the recovered remains, the Navy determined that only 7 of the 12 air crew were recovered.

In 1995, the Navy received photographs from a helicopter pilot from Greenland Air indicating that remains were still present. In June and July 2004, after thorough planning and monitoring of the wreckage site through satellite photography, the recovery team found a three-week window of ideal weather conditions to conduct a second, more thorough search of the site. Cadaver dogs, MK-26 ground penetrating radar and Arctic guides were instrumental in the success of this mission.

Unusual warm weather in Greenland and Iceland this year was a key factor in the success of this mission, said Sparks. While searching the glacier, the warmth sometimes melted one to two feet of snow and ice a day, exposing wreckage that had never been exposed before.

The recovered remains are currently being transported to Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii, for a full military honors repatriation ceremony to acknowledge the ultimate sacrifice made by these Sailors. Following initial analysis at Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command, Hawaii, the remains will be turned over to the Armed Forces DNA Lab for identification and then turned over to their families for proper burial.

(ANN salutes Journalist 2nd Class Jennifer Crenshaw, Commander, Naval Air Force, US Atlantic Fleet Public Affairs)

FMI: www.news.navy.mil/local/comnavairlant