Wednesday, President Donald Trump and his daughter Ivanka made an unannounced trip to Dover Air Force Base—where the military’s mortuary for combat fallen is located—to be on hand when the remains of Chief Special Warfare Operator William “Ryan” Owens were returned to the U.S.
Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) also traveled with the Trumps aboard Marine One to observe the Dignified Transfer of Remains. Owens was a native of Illinois, so it’s not immediately clear why Coons traveled with the president. The media at large wasn’t notified in advance of the travel plans, however, which led to an epic meltdown from MSNBC, CNN and other networks that weren’t part of the traveling press pool.
Dignified Transfer of Remains, while not an official military ceremony, is a solemn moment when a service member’s remains are removed from the transporting aircraft to a mortuary vehicle. Next-of-kin and two additional family members are allowed by military regulations to observe the transfer, and media participation is at the discretion of the next-of-kin. In the case of Chief Petty Officer Owens, the family asked that the media not be permitted to observe the transfer.
The traveling pool, however, was notified, and did travel to Dover aboard a separate aircraft. They did not observe the transfer, per the family’s request, and they did not have access to the president.
Owens was the first member of the military to die in a military engagement ordered by Trump. The raid in which he was killed had been planned during the Obama administration, but the president gave the green light to launch it.
