Bend man to receive flag in MIA father’s honor
Major Howard V. Andre, Jr. had been classified as missing in action in Vietnam for nearly 44 years until the Tennessee native’s remains were identified in 2013. His son, Brad Andre of Bend, had been waiting for decades for the news that his dad had been found.
On September 23, Major Andre was buried with full military honors at Arlington National Cemetery in Washington DC. Brad Andre and his wife Helen attended the services.
In recognition of Major Andre’s honorable service and sacrifice, and to honor his family, the director of the Oregon Department of Veterans’ Affairs, Cameron Smith, will be presenting a U.S. flag, on behalf of Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam, to Brad Andre at a ceremony on Sat., Oct. 5, at 12 p.m.
The ceremony will be held at the Mt. Bachelor Village Resort Convention Center during the Military Officers Association of America conference luncheon.
On July 8, 1968, Major Andre and Major James Sizemore were on an armed night time reconnaissance mission when their A-26A Invader aircraft crashed in Xiangjhoang Province, Laos during the Vietnam War. Both men died, but their remains were unaccounted for until April 2013.
In 1993, a joint U.S./Lao People’s Democratic Republic team investigated an aircraft crash site in Laos and recovered wreckage from an A-26. The team was not able to conduct a complete evacuation of the site at that time.
Twice in 2010, joint U.S./Lao People’s Democratic Republic teams conducted excavations of the crash site recovering human remains, aircraft wreckage, personal effects and military equipment associated with Majors Andre and Sizemore.
The Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command identified the pilot’s remains and they were returned to the U.S. for proper burial. There are more than 1,640 American service members still unaccounted for from the Vietnam War. More than 83,000 Americans are still missing or unaccounted for since World War II.
Mt. Bachelor’s Village Resort Convention Center is located at 19717 Mt. Bachelor Drive in Bend.
