Searching for the Missing American Pilot

The only American whose fate remains unclear from the 1991 Persian Gulf War is U.S. Navy pilot Captain Michael Scott Spicher. He was a pilot of the U.S. Navy F-18 jet, which was shot down on January 17, 1991, in the desert between Baghdad and the Jordanian border. In March 1991, all prisoners of the Gulf War under U.S. leadership were released from Iraqi captivity, and all bodies of soldiers killed in the war were returned except for Captain Spicher and a Saudi pilot. In May 1991, the U.S. Army removed Captain Spicher from the missing in action list and classified him as killed in action. In 1995, following lengthy and complex negotiations with officials of Saddam Hussein's regime, American experts went to Iraq and continued their inspections at the crash site for five days. The U.S. government pressured Baghdad officials for information on Captain Spicher's status, but no results were obtained. Reports from some sources indicated that Captain Spicher was on the list of missing in action, and eventually, on October 11, 2002, he was recognized as a captured missing person. Since the end of the major war in Iraq in May 2003, the U.S. government has made significant efforts to find Captain Spicher or his body, and this investigation continues. The area where Captain Spicher's plane crashed is inhabited by Bedouins, and U.S. officials believe that those who were there at the time of the crash must be aware of Captain Spicher's fate. The U.S. government has promised asylum in America to anyone who delivers Captain Spicher to American authorities, which would also include asylum for his parents, wife, and children. Therefore, anyone who knows about Captain Spicher's fate and status should contact American officials and provide their information.