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Burial Set For Minn. Airman Killed In Vietnam War

BROWNS VALLEY, Minn. (AP) -- A Minnesota airman killed during the Vietnam War is to be buried with full military honors Saturday in Browns Valley.

Air Force Capt. Darrell John Spinler was killed in action on June 21, 1967. But his remains were not recovered until last November and were identified in January.

Spinler had been deployed to Vietnam in 1966. He died when the A1E aircraft he was piloting was shot down during a bombing raid in Laos along the Xe Kong River.

For years, his body was presumed to have been washed away by the river, but last year the military conducted a full excavation of the site and recovered human remains and personal effects.

Gov. Mark Dayton has ordered all U.S. and Minnesota flags lowered to half-staff Saturday in Spinler's honor.

(© Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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