For years, the ashes of cremated body parts from some service members were dumped in landfills until 2008, Dover Air Force Base mortuary admitted. The disposal was done without disclosure to the familys of fallen service members. The practice was abandoned, and the remains are now buried at sea. Air Force officials said it was not whole bodies that were disposed of in this manner, but rather fragments or portions of body parts that were unable to be identified, or were later recovered from the battlefield.
Relatives of service members who learned of the disposal were shocked by how the remains were handled. Gari-Lynn Smith said she was “appalled and disgusted” on learning portions of her husbands remains were disposed of in that manner in 2006. Lt. Gen. Darrell G. Jones said, “That was the common practice at the time, and since then our practices have improved.”
