Remains found last month in Iraq’s Anbar province are those of Navy Capt. Michael Scott Speicher, who was shot down flying a combat mission in an F/A-18 Hornet on Jan. 17, 1991, and whose fate until now had been uncertain, Defense Department officials reported today.U.S. Navy Capt. Michael “Scott” Speicher was shot down in an F/A-18 Hornet on January 17, 1991, the first night of the war.

The announcement early Sunday of the discovery of Speicher’s remains ends more than 18 years of speculation about whether Speicher may have survived the crash and been held captive, or died in captivity in the ensuing years.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with Capt. Speicher’s family for the ultimate sacrifice he made for his country,” Navy Secretary Ray Mabus said in a statement. “I am also extremely grateful to all those who have worked so tirelessly over the last 18 years to bring Capt. Speicher home.”

An Iraqi civilian told U.S. forces in Iraq in early July about the location of the crash that killed Speicher, according to the statement. U.S. Marines in Anbar province went to the site and spoke to another Iraqi who told them he witnessed Bedouins burying Speicher’s remains in the desert after the crash, the statement said.

Source: Defense Department news release