Can we do a stand-up?
In order to maintain the solemn dignity that marks the dignified transfer we will not allow stand-ups. Media members are allowed to witness and document the transfer, but are asked to avoid any unnecessary movement or noise.
Have there been any exceptions to the rule?
In April 1996, the media was permitted to document the arrival and transfer ceremony for the remains of Secretary of Commerce Ron Brown and 32 other Americans killed when their plane crashed in Croatia. President Clinton was present to receive the flag-draped transfer cases.
In October 2000 the Defense Department distributed photographs of transfer cases arriving at Dover AFB bearing the remains of military personnel killed in the bombing of the USS Cole.
In September 2001, the Department of the Air Force published a photograph of the arrival and transfer of the remains of a victim of the 9-11 attack on the Pentagon.
When was media coverage of dignified transfers banned? Why?
News media have not been allowed to cover the arrival of the fallen at Dover AFB since January 1991. This policy was part of the Public Affairs Guidance - Operation Desert Storm Casualty and Mortuary Affairs, published by the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs (OASD-PA) and dated February 1991.
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