Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency

Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency Type: Independent Agencies Parent organization: U.S. Department of Defense Employees: 650 Executive: Director Budget: $130 million (fiscal year 2023 estimate) Address: 2300 Defense Pentagon, Room 2B546A, Washington, DC 20301-2300, USA Website: https://www.dpaa.mil Creation Legislation: Department of Defense Directive 5105.74 Wikipedia: Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency

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Mission The mission of the DPAA is to provide the fullest possible accounting for missing U.S. personnel from past conflicts to their families and the nation. It achieves this through investigation, recovery, and identification of remains from World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Cold War, and other conflicts.

Services Recovery Operations; Laboratory Analysis; Historical Research; Family and Public Outreach

Regulations

Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
File:Defense POW MIA seal.png
Seal of the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
Department Overview
Formed	January 15, 2015 (2015-01-15)
Jurisdiction	Federal government of the United States
Headquarters	2600 Defense Pentagon, Washington, D.C.
Annual budget	US$196 million (2024)
Department Executives	Kelly McKeague, Director Fern Sumpter Winbush, Principal Deputy Director John Figuerres, Deputy Director for Operations Sergeant Major Anthony Worsley, Senior Enlisted Advisor
Parent department	U.S. Department of Defense
Website
dpaa.mil

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) is an agency within the U.S. Department of Defense whose mission is to recover and identify unaccounted Department of Defense personnel listed as prisoners of war (POW) or missing in action (MIA) from designated past conflicts, from countries around the world.

Official Site

Mission

The mission of the DPAA is to achieve the fullest possible accounting for all U.S. military personnel listed as Prisoners of War (POW) or Missing in Action (MIA) from past conflicts. This involves locating, recovering, and identifying remains, providing closure to families, and honoring the nation's commitment to its war heroes.

Parent organization

DPAA is part of the United States Department of Defense.

Legislation

The DPAA was established by the Department of Defense in 2015 through a merger of several existing entities without specific legislative action.

Partners

• Various U.S. government agencies for international cooperation
• Foreign governments for recovery operations
• Non-governmental organizations like the American Red Cross

Number of employees

DPAA has approximately 600 employees.

Organization structure

• Office of the Director leads the agency's overall strategy.
• Recovery and Identification Divisions handle field operations and laboratory analysis.
• Research and Analysis conducts historical research to support recovery operations.
• Family and Public Affairs engages with families and the public.

List of programs

• Field Recovery Operations
• Laboratory Identification Processes
• Research into Unaccounted-for Cases
• Family Member Updates (FMU) and Notification

Last total enacted budget

The last total enacted budget for DPAA was approximately $136 million for Fiscal Year 2023.

Leader

DPAA is led by a Director.

Services provided

DPAA provides services such as conducting worldwide recovery missions, forensic analysis for identification, historical research, and maintaining communication with families of the missing. It also works on policy development for POW/MIA issues, manages a central database of missing personnel, and engages in public outreach to educate about its mission.

Regulations overseen

While DPAA does not oversee regulations in the traditional sense, it operates under DoD policies and international agreements regarding the treatment and repatriation of remains.

Headquarters address

155 Pentagon, Washington, DC 20301-1550

History

File:240920-F-IK176-1345.jpg

U.S. Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Henry Ritticher, Gold Star brother to Lt. Jack C. Ritticher, places a rosette after Rittcher's name during the National POW/MIA Recognition Day Ceremony hosted by the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) at National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, Honolulu, Hawaii, Sept. 20, 2024. The rosette signifies Rittcher's remains have been found and identified and is no longer missing in action (MIA).

The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency was formed on January 15, 2015, as the result the merger of the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), the Defense Prisoner of War/Missing Personnel Office, and parts of the United States Air Force's Life Sciences Lab. Scientific laboratories are maintained at Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska, and Joint Base Pearl Harbor–Hickam, Hawaii with their headquarters located at The Pentagon in Washington D.C. Currently, DPAA is in a cooperative agreement with The Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine, Inc., which provides operational support during worldwide recovery operations. Following the 2023 wildfires in Maui, the agency assisted in identifying victims' remains.

Website

https://www.dpaa.mil/

Wikipedia article

wikipedia:Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency

External links

• https://www.dpaa.mil/
• https://www.defense.gov/Explore/Spotlight/Pow-Mia/
• https://www.dpaa.mil/Resources/Fact-Sheets/Article-View/Article/584983/defense-pow-mia-accounting-agency-dpaa/