Army relents, allows pilot to be buried in his own grave

By SONYA ROSS
Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON – Army officials relented on Friday and offered a separate Arlington National Cemetery burial for Charles Frank Burlingame III, pilot of the hijacked jet that crashed into the Pentagon.

Army Secretary Thomas White made the decision Friday afternoon, according to the office of Sen. George Allen, R-Va. and the Military District of Washington, which has jurisdiction over the cemetery.

White's decision means that Burlingame, a former Navy pilot and 17-year Naval reservist, will be interred in his own grave, rather than share the burial plot he had arranged for his deceased parents. It also means Burlingame's widow, Sheri, could be buried with him.

In a statement, White said he reversed his earlier decision about Burlingame "to honor the intent of proposed legislation, and to meet the wishes of his grieving family."

He said he told Burlingame's family of his decision. "I also expressed my condolences for their tragic loss," White said.

The burial will take place on Wednesday afternoon as scheduled, said Barbara Owens, spokeswoman for the Military District of Washington. A funeral was scheduled beforehand at Fort Myer Memorial Chapel.

Burlingame's brother and sister, who led a vocal protest on their brother's behalf, were traveling to Los Angeles on Friday and were not immediately available for comment. His widow, Sheri, could not be reached.

Burlingame, 51, of Herndon, Va., was initially denied his own grave at Arlington because he died before 60, the eligibility age for reservists. Army officials said he was eligible to have his cremated remains inurned in the cemetery's Columbarium, or share his parents' plot.

Burlingame's family protested, saying his long military history and the fact that he died in the Sept. 11th attacks should have been taken into account. Burlingame flew Navy jets for eight years, served several tours at the Navy's elite Top Gun school and spent 17 years in the Naval Reserve.

His situation led the chairman of the House Veterans' Affairs Committee to seek revisions to rules on burial of reservists. Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., introduced legislation Thursday that would eliminate the age requirement for in-ground burial.

Allen asked President Bush to grant an exemption for Burlingame. Bush's chief of staff, Andrew Card, called Pentagon officials about the matter. The ultimate decision in the matter was made by the Army secretary, said White House spokesman Scott McClellan.

"The president is pleased that the Army and the family were able to work this out," McClellan said.

Bush had signed a waiver to have CIA paramilitary officer Johnny Micheal "Mike" Spann, the first U.S. combat death in Afghanistan, buried at Arlington.

The term of Spann's service as a Marine Corps officer did not earn him a burial in Arlington, so his family asked the Bush administration for the waiver, a cemetery spokeswoman said.

Spann will be buried with full military honors on Monday. He was shot and killed by rioting Taliban prisoners on Nov. 25 at Mazar-e-Sharif.

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On the Net:

Arlington National Cemetery: www.arlingtoncemetery.com

APNP-12-07-01 1641CST