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  No. 139-02
IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 20, 2002

DOD CLARIFIES ORIGIN OF GPS SYSTEM

During today's DoD press briefing information was presented regarding the recovery of a Global Positioning System (GPS) unit by U.S. forces conducting a search of a cave in the Operation Anaconda area. Initial indications that the GPS unit potentially belonged to a U.S. servicemember killed in Somalia several years ago have now been determined to be inaccurate.

Subsequent research regarding the origin of this particular GPS unit now indicates the unit belonged to a U.S. pilot who recently served in Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom. This servicemember transferred possession of his GPS unit to another U.S. pilot before redeploying from Afghanistan. This second pilot lost possession of the GPS unit in a firefight during Operation Anaconda.

http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Mar2002/b03202002_bt139-02.html