Captain Robert M. Baird, platoon leader for 2nd Platoon, Honor Guard Company, 4th Battalion, 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard) awaits start of the Dignified Transfer.

A solemn dignified transfer of remains is conducted upon arrival at Dover Air Force Base, DE, from the aircraft to a transfer vehicle to honor those who have given their lives in the service of our country. The vehicle then moves the fallen to the port mortuary.

Marine Honor Guard from Marine Barracks, 8th and I, Washington, DC

Left to right: Brigadier General Malinda E. Dunn, Commander, US Army Legal Services Agency and Chief Judge, US Army Court of Criminal Appeals, The Judge Advocate General’s Corps, US Army, Colonel Andrew H. Smith, Commanding Officer, Marine Barracks, Washington, DC., Colonel Dwight Sones, US Air Force, Vice Commander, 436th Airlift Wing, Dover AFB, Chaplin Captain William Cooper.

A dignified transfer is the process by which, upon the return from the theater of operations to the United States, the remains of fallen military members are transferred from the aircraft to a waiting vehicle and then to the port mortuary. The dignified transfer is not a ceremony; rather, it is a solemn movement of the transfer case by a carry team of military personnel from the fallen member's respective service. A dignified transfer is conducted for every U.S. military member who dies in the theater of operation while in the service of their country. A senior ranking officer of the fallen member's service presides over each dignified transfer.

The sequence of the dignified transfer starts with the fallen being returned to Dover by the most expedient means possible, which may mean a direct flight from theater, or a flight to Ramstein Air Base, Germany, and then to Dover. It is the Department of Defense's policy, and AFMAO's mission, to return America's fallen to their loved ones as quickly as possible.

Once the aircraft lands at Dover, service-specific carry teams remove the transfer cases individually from the aircraft and move them to a waiting mortuary transport vehicle. Once all of the transfer cases have been taken to the transport vehicles, they are then taken to the port mortuary.

In March 2009, the Secretary of Defense announced a change in policy that, upon consent of the family of the deceased, allowed media access to cover dignified transfers. The only dignified transfers that will be open to media coverage, with family approval, are those personnel who die in the line of duty supporting Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom.

Transfer Cases are put onto the K loader then are lowered to awaiting honor guards.

The Air Force Mortuary Affairs Operations Center (AFMAO) was activated Dec. 15, 2008, as a direct reporting unit to the Directorate of Services, Manpower and Personnel, Headquarters United States Air Force. It is the center's mission and privilege to fulfill the nation's sacred commitment of ensuring dignity, honor, and respect to the fallen and care, service, and support to their families.

L/Cpl Gregory A. Posey being removed from the K loader to the transfer vehicle.

Staff Sergeant Johnny Roosevelt Polk being taken from the K loader to the transfer vehicle.

AFMAO has a total force staff consisting of active duty Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines as well as Guardsmen, Reservists and civilians. The staff also consists of representatives from federal agencies such as the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Armed Forces Medical Examiner who are responsible for the complete processing of remains. The staff utilizes state-of-the-art equipment to establish positive identification through DNA, dental and fingerprint analysis and autopsy the remains to determine cause of death. The staff also prepares fallen members for transport to their final destination as determined by the family.

Dignified Transfer Operation Enduring Freedom Staff Sergeant Johnny Roosevelt Polk from Gulfport, MS. L/Cpl Gregory A. Posey from Winchester, TN - August 1, 2009