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In memory of the 29th anniversary of the Implementation Force-21 crash on April 3, 1996, the 76th Airlift Squadron held a remembrance ceremony at Ramstein Air Base, April 10.
Six Airmen from the 76th AS, in addition to 29 American and Croatian passengers, lost their lives during a mission directed to establish trade partnerships in the aftermath of the Bosnian civil war.
“IFO-21’s mission was official trade. The U.S. Secretary of Commerce, Ronald H. Brown, carried an offer for normalizing relations between the U.S. and a former communist enemy, the newly independent Croatia,” said Shannon Murphy, 86th Airlift Wing historian. “As communism collapsed throughout Europe, the United States sought to help build new ties with new governments. This tragic accident started as a mission of peace, designed to forge stronger economic cooperation in the former Yugoslavia.”
While various specifics of the crash still remain unknown, this occurrence made it clear that change was necessary.
The subsequent impact of this incident drove guidance for all U.S. Air Force aircraft to be equipped with flight data and cockpit voice recorders, as well as, regulation changes requiring specific DOD approval for all foreign instrument approaches to meet criteria equivalent to U.S. standards.
“As with everything we do in the military, standards, regulations and instructions govern the way we operate,” said Brig. Gen. Adrienne Williams, 86th AW commander. “Many of the rules we live by may seem arbitrary to the casual observer, but nearly every safety rule and regulation can be said to have been written in blood. Every time we step to fly we accept risk, but our risk is minimized when we enforce standards and follow regulations. Each one of us plays a crucial role in maintaining safety and readiness.”
The 76th AS memorializes those who lost their lives by holding this annual remembrance ceremony. This commemoration ended with a ceremonial wreath being placed at the remembrance memorial, followed by a C-21A flyover.
“Grief is intensified by the idea that the person lost will be lost to history as an ever-growing distant memory,” Murphy said. “In the aftermath of a loss, personal identifiers like someone’s birthday, the color of their eyes, what they like to drink, becomes a part of their history. But their stories, their experiences, how they affected other people, what they were passionate about: That becomes their enduring legacy. All stories matter. All lives are important.”
