A flyover during a hazy day at Arlington National Cemetery captured by the @arlingtonmedia team. – Arlington Media

A flyover during a hazy day at Arlington National Cemetery captured by the @arlingtonmedia team.

Post author:Clifford Crittenden
Post published:September 29, 2021
Post category:Uncategorized

A caisson arrives at the gravesite of an honored veteran in Arlington National Cemetery. In this image captured by our team, a woman can be seen standing to the far left of the soldiers. This is a common sight at Arlington National Cemetery and this individual holds a special role. She is what is known as an “Arlington Lady”. In the words of ANC, “The Arlington Ladies are a group of volunteers who attend funeral services at Arlington National Cemetery to ensure that no Soldier, Sailor, Airman or Coast Guardsman is buried alone. The Arlington Ladies began in 1948 within the Air Force. The Chief of Staff of the Air Force, General Hoyt Vandenberg, and his wife, Gladys, routinely attended funeral services at the cemetery and noticed that some services had only a military chaplain present. The Vandenbergs believed that a member of the Air Force family should also attend, and Mrs. Vandenberg asked her friends to start attending services. She ultimately formed a group from the Officer’s Wives Club. In 1973, General Creighton Abrams’ wife, Julia, founded the Army’s version of the group. In 1985, the Navy created a group, and in 2006 the Coast Guard followed suit. The Marines do not officially have a group, as they send a representative of the Marine Commandant to every funeral. Today, the Air Force, Army, Navy and Coast Guard all have Arlington Ladies who perform similar volunteer duties, attending funeral services for active duty service members and veterans. The criteria to become an Arlington Lady is different for each military service, but each Lady has some connection to the respective service, generally as a current or former military member or as a spouse of a military member. The Ladies are an official part of the funeral service, representing the military service’s chief of staff or equivalent. They present cards of condolence to the next of kin from the military service chief and spouse on behalf of the service family, and from the Arlington Lady herself.” PC: @arlingtonmedia

February 4, 2022

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¹ DEPENDENT SERVICES
When a spouse or other dependent of a current or former member of the Armed Forces is buried at Arlington, the military service in which the primary party served will provide:

A chaplain
A casket team (body bearers / pall bearers)

No other military funeral honors will be rendered unless the spouse also served in the military.

² STANDARD HONORS SERVICES
Enlisted service members, WO-1 through CW-3, and O-1 through O-3, interred/inurned at Arlington National Cemetery will receive honors provided by the decedent’s branch of service. These honors include:

A chaplain
A casket team (body bearers / pall bearers)
A firing party
A bugler

³ FULL HONORS SERVICES
In addition to the standard military funeral honors, some Commissioned and Warrant officers and senior non-Commissioned Officer with a pay grade of E-9, CW-4 and CW-5, and O-4 and above:

ARMY: Sergeant Major (SGM), Command Sergeant Major (CSM), Sergeant Major of the Army (SMA),
NAVY & COAST GUARD: Master Chief Petty Officer (MCPO), Fleet/Command Master Chief Petty Officer, Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy (MCPON), or Coast Guard (MCPOCG),
MARINES: Master Gunnery Sergeant (MGySgt), Sergeant Major (SgtMaj), Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps (SgtMajMC),
AIR FORCE: Chief Master Sergeant (CMSgt), First Sergeant, Command Chief Master Sergeant, Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force (CMSAF),

are eligible for full military funeral honors at Arlington National Cemetery including:

A chaplain
A casket team (body bearers / pall bearers)
A firing party
A bugler
A military band
An escort platoon (size varies according to the rank of the deceased)

Additionally, those eligible for full military funeral honors at Arlington National Cemetery may use the caisson (UNAVAILABLE until September 2024), if available. Officers in the rank of colonel and above in the Army and the Marine Corps may be provided a caparisoned (riderless) horse, if available. General/flag officers may receive a cannon salute (17 guns for a four-star general, 15 for a three-star, 13 for a two-star, 11 for a one-star), if available.