171st ARW Chaplain Team Strengthens Casualty Care Readiness

Members of the 171st Air Refueling Wing Chaplain Team, Pennsylvania Air National Guard, attended specialized training focused on dignified transfer operations, mortuary affairs, grief support, and family care at Dover Air Force Base, Delaware, May 19-21, 2026.

Hosted by the Air Force Mortuary Affairs Operations Chapel Team, the three-day course prepared chaplains and religious affairs personnel to support families following the loss of a service member and to enhance readiness for casualty response and large-scale combat operations.

Training topics included bereavement care, acute grief support, dignified transfers, post-life religious accommodations, caregiver self-care, solemn movements, mortuary and casualty terminology, and mass casualty considerations. Participants also received instruction on the four-phased approach to human remains operations and the Chaplain Corps' role in supporting Airmen and families throughout the casualty care process.

"The training is meant to prepare Chaplain Corps personnel for supporting the families of our Fallen at home stations by understanding the process of dignified transfers at Dover," said Master Sgt. Frank Chappell, 171st ARW religious affairs superintendent. "It gave us a deeper understanding of the people, processes, and care involved in honoring service members who have died in the line of duty."

Throughout the course, attendees engaged with medical examiners, embalmers, and mortuary affairs professionals responsible for ensuring fallen military members are treated with dignity, honor, and respect throughout the repatriation process. Participants also visited the Division of Forensic Science in Wilmington, Delaware, where they gained insight into the forensic and mortuary procedures that support casualty operations.

In addition to operational instruction, the training focused on strengthening participants' counseling skills and spiritual resilience through the Companioning Model of bereavement care. The model encourages caregivers to develop deeper empathy by reflecting on their own experiences with loss while learning techniques to effectively support others navigating grief.

Chappell said the training challenged participants to examine their own sources of loss and better understand the emotional, mental, and spiritual needs of grieving service members and families.

"With its instruction and dialogues on mental, emotional, and spiritual care throughout bereavement experiences, the process of dignified transfer and honoring the Fallen with care and respect, and controlled exposure to human remains, I can say that this was one of the most beneficial and impactful trainings I have received in my military career," said Chappell.

The training reinforced the Chaplain Corps' mission to provide spiritual care, advisement, and support across the force while ensuring personnel remain prepared to assist Airmen and their families during times of loss, crisis, and remembrance.