I
believe the following information would be quite helpful to many of your visitors
who are trying to locate present and former members of the military, in particular
the Army and Air Force:
Information About A Military
Person
If you are seeking information about military
personnel who served in the USAAF or the USAF, first, obtain as much of the following
information as possible:
Full name and serial number
of the individual.
Rank held at a specific time or
highest rank achieved.
Names and dates of awards
for decorations received (e.g., the Purple Heart).
Unit(s)
to which the individual was assigned or attached and the dates of service.
Individual's
military occupation or specialty, e.g., pilot, navigator, bombardier, gunner,
physician, nurse, maintenance technician, supply clerk, security or military police,
etc.
Second, contact local sources if original residence
is known:
Adjutant General's Office in the individual's
state of residence for data on state personnel who served in World War II, Korea,
or Vietnam.
County and State Veteran's Service Offices
for information in case the individual applied for Veteran's benefits or hospitalization.
County
Office of Vital Records in individual's county of residence prior to entry into
service for either birth or marriage records of the individual.
County
Probate Office for a will or Letters of Administration on file for the individual
if he or she possessed property in the county and is now deceased.
Newspapers
published in the city or county where the individual is presumed to have lived
prior to entry into service for news items or articles, including obituaries or
death notices.
Local post of the American Legion,
Veterans of Foreign Wars, American Veterans of World War II, and the like, for
information on local men and women who survived service in World War II, Korea,
or Vietnam.
The State Office of Vital Statistics
for death records of service personnel who died while on active duty.
Finally,
the following Federal agencies may be able to help:
Next
of kin may ask for a copy of the service member's personnel records (including
"201" files) by contacting:
National Personnel
Records Center
Attn.: Air Force Reference Branch
>9700 Page Blvd.
St. Louis MO 63132
For aircrew members lost in combat
during World War II:
Request a Missing Air Crew Report
(MACR) under the individual's name from:
National
Archives and Records Administration
Attn.: Textual Reference Branch
8601
Adelphi Road
College Park MD 20740-6001
To determine
whether an individual was declared missing or killed in action, contact the agency
below. They can also provide location details if the deceased is buried in a US
overseas or national cemetery. If the response is negative (no record of death
or continued missing status), it is possible that the member survived.
US
Total Army Personnel Command
TAPC-PED-F
2461 Eisenhower Ave, Room 984,
Hoffman Bldg. 1
Alexandria VA 22331
To contact
Air Force personnel who are still on active duty, or who have retired: Write a
letter to the person you wish to contact. Place the letter in a sealed and stamped
envelope with your name and return address and the name of the individual on the
outside of the envelope. Send this envelope to the agency below along with a note
giving all identifying information about the person you are trying to reach. Ask
the locator to add the individual's current address to your sealed envelope and
to forward it to the person you wish to contact. A $3.50 finder's fee must be
included (make check out to: DAO-DE RAFB).
HQ AFPC/MSIMDL
550 C Street W, Suite 50
Randolph AFB, TX 78150-4752
To
contact military personnel who have filed a claim against the Veterans Administration
(VA) write a letter to the person, place in an unsealed stamped envelope without
a return address. Send envelope with $2.00 fee and name, serial number, date of
birth, etc., to the local regional VA office listed in the Blue Pages of the phone
book. The VA will forward letter to last known address.
If
nothing else works:
Consider "search notices"
or letters to the editor in the following publications:
Air
Force Magazine
Air Force Association
1501 Lee Highway
>Arlington,
VA 22209-1198
Air Force Times
6883 Commercial
Drive
Springfield, VA 22159
Fax (703) 750-8601
The
Retired Officer
Reader's Exchange
TROA
201 N. Washington Street
Alexandria, VA 22314-2539
Sergeant's
Magazine
5211 Auth Road
Suitland MD 20746
Also
consider running a search in one of the national telephone directories now available
on CD-ROM (compact discs readable by a personal computer). These directories contain
millions of telephone numbers retrievable by name. Several companies are now offering
such a product (PhoneDisc USA and PhoneDisc Reverse are but two), and the public
can often find these directories in public or university libraries. The service
is usually updated monthly and can vary widely in quality.
Another
suggestion is How To Locate Anyone Who Is Or Has Been in the Military: Armed Forces
Locator Directory, Fifth Edition, by Lt. Col. (Ret) Richard Johnson, MIE Publishing,
$23. It explains hundreds of proven ways to locate current and former members
of all service branches, including Guard and Reserve. It provides information
on how anyone may obtain copies of individual military records, rosters, muster
rolls, after-action reports and numerous other military records. Please note:
The inclusion of this publication does not imply endorsement by the Department
of the Air Force or Department of Defense.
