The samples were handed over to the Military Institute of Forensic Medicine following a ceremony held by the Air Defence – Air Force Service in coordination with Military Region 9 and the People's Committees of Can Tho, Dong Thap, An Giang, Vinh Long and Ca Mau.

At the incense-offering ceremony, participants expressed deep gratitude to the soldiers who bravely fought and sacrificed their lives for the Fatherland and the people's happiness.

During the wars to defend the Fatherland, countless young people left their hometowns, families, and personal dreams to undertake national duties. Many never returned from the battlefields while the identities and burial sites of others remain unknown.

The search, collection, and identification of fallen soldiers' remains are not only a particularly important political task but also reflects the nation's sense of responsibility and tradition of “when drinking water, remember its source.” Every set of remains found and every identity accurately established means another family can welcome a loved one home and another part of national history can be preserved.

According to the Air Defence – Air Force, flights conducted under the “500-day campaign” are more than transport missions. Those carrying biological samples for DNA testing are particularly meaningful as each sample represents a life and the decades-long hopes of families seeking to restore the names of their loved ones.

Under the campaign, the Air Defence – Air Force has closely coordinated with relevant agencies and units to transport, receive and hand over the samples safely, promptly and accurately.

Earlier the same day, at the military area of Can Tho International Airport, the Military Region 9 Command coordinated with the Air Defence – Air Force and the People's Committees of Can Tho, Dong Thap, An Giang, Vinh Long and Ca Mau to transfer the samples. They were carried to Hanoi aboard a CASA-C295 military transport aircraft operated by Brigade 918 of the Air Defence – Air Force.

Speaking at the event, Lt. Gen. Ho Van Thai, Secretary of the Party Committee and Political Commissar of Military Region 9, said generations of Vietnamese people had endured hardships and made sacrifices to safeguard national independence, freedom and territorial integrity.

He said the transportation of the 15,401 samples marked the 11th such shipment and the first to be carried by a military transport aircraft, representing a journey of gratitude and tribute to the nation's fallen heroes.

The samples will be handed over in Hanoi to the Military Institute of Forensic Medicine under the Ministry of National Defence, the Institute of Criminal Sciences under the Ministry of Public Security, and the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology for DNA testing to accurately identify the fallen soldiers./.