Air Force Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, center, and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth approach the review stand on Friday, Sept. 18, 2026, in Arlington, Va., during the Department of Defense National POW/MIA Recognition Day Ceremony at the Pentagon. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)
ARLINGTON, Va. — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Air Force Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, pledged Friday that the United States would continue efforts to recover and identify missing American service members for as long as necessary during the annual POW/MIA Recognition Day ceremony at the Pentagon.
In his remarks, Hegseth referenced two U.S. airmen whose F-15E was hit by enemy fire over Iran during Easter weekend.
“I knew that America, whether it was one day or one year, was going to uphold its promise and rescue me,” Hegseth quoted one of the airmen as saying. “It’s what we do.”
“This Department of War will never stop looking,” Hegseth said, using the secondary name for the Department of Defense. “We leave no man behind.”
U.S. Air Force Honor Guard members carry guidons on Friday, Sept. 18, 2026, in Arlington, Va., during the Department of Defense National POW/MIA Recognition Day Ceremony at the Pentagon. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)
Air Force Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, left, crosses himself as Secretary of War Pete Hegseth bows his head during a recitation of the invocation on Friday, Sept. 18, 2026 in Arlington, Va., during the Department of Defense National POW/MIA Recognition Day Ceremony at the Pentagon. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth makes remarks on Friday, Sept. 18, 2026, in Arlington, Va., during the Department of Defense National POW/MIA Recognition Day Ceremony at the Pentagon. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)
Caine spoke about Marine 1st Lt. Alexander “Sandy” Bonnyman Jr., who was killed during the Battle of Tarawa in World War II and posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor. Bonnyman’s remains went unidentified for 72 years before being recovered from a burial site discovered by the nonprofit History Flight and identified by the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency in 2015. Bonnyman’s remains were subsequently laid to rest on a family plot in Knoxville, Tenn.
“That obligation does not fade with time or lessen with distance,” Caine said. “Our duty does not end until every missing American is accounted for and brought home to a grateful nation.”
Air Force Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff makes remarks on Friday, Sept. 18, 2026, in Arlington, Va., during the Department of Defense National POW/MIA Recognition Day Ceremony at the Pentagon. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)
Former prisoners of war are acknowledged on Friday, Sept. 18, 2026, in Arlington, Va., during the Department of Defense National POW/MIA Recognition Day Ceremony at the Pentagon. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)
Air Force Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, left, and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth salute during the national anthem on Friday, Sept. 18, 2026, in Arlington, Va., during the Department of Defense National POW/MIA Recognition Day Ceremony at the Pentagon. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)
Air Force Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, left, and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth view a U.S., Air Force flyover on Friday, Sept. 18, 2026, in Arlington, Va., during the Department of Defense National POW/MIA Recognition Day Ceremony at the Pentagon. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)
Former POWs and families of POWs and missing service members were asked to stand and be recognized during the ceremony.
America’s Freedom Bell was then rung four times in honor of Army, Marine Corps, Navy and Air Force personnel who were held as prisoners of war or remain missing in action.
The ceremony concluded with a Pass in Review, the Air Force Band playing the “Armed Forces Medley” and a missing-man flyover.
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