Byline: Alex Rodriguez
VLADIVOSTOK, Russia _ At the height of the Cold War, the U.S. routinely dispatched spy planes along Soviet shores and borders in a perilous, covert campaign to scrutinize the Kremlin's air defense prowess.
Some of the planes slipped out of Soviet airspace unscathed; some were shot down. Washington told families of the missing airmen that the missions were training runs or weather reconnaissance flights _ anything but the truth.
Today, those families know the truth about those missions. What they lack is an ending, the peace of mind that comes with laying to rest the remains of a son, husband or brother classified for decades as missing.
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