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Americans See Return of War Dead-

DOVER AIR FORCE BASE, Delaware - The Pentagon's 18-year ban on media covering the return of fallen U.S. service members ended with a solemn ceremony for the arrival of a flag-draped casket of an airman felled in Afghanistan.

After receiving permission from family members, the military opened Dover Air Force Base in Delaware to the media Sunday night for the return of the body of Air Force Staff Sgt. Phillip Myers of Hopewell, Virginia.

The 30-year-old airman was killed April 4 near Helmand province, Afghanistan, when he was hit with an improvised explosive device, the Department of Defense said.

Myers' family was the first to be asked under a new Pentagon policy whether it wished to have media coverage of the arrival of a loved one at the Dover base mortuary, the entry point for service personnel killed overseas. The family agreed, but declined to be interviewed or photographed.

On a cool, clear night under the yellowish haze of floodlights on the tarmac, an eight-member team wearing white gloves and camouflage battle fatigues carried Myers' body off of a military contract Boeing 747 that touched down at 9:19 p.m. after a flight from Ramstein Air Base, Germany. (courtesy AP via MSNBC.com)



DOVER, DE - APRIL 05: Members of the U.S. Air Force carry team off load a flag-draped transfer case holding the remains of Air Force Staff Sgt. Phillip Meyers of Hopewell, Va. during an arrival ceremony at Dover Air Force Base, April 5, 2009 in Dover, Delaware. Staff Sgt. Phillip Meyers was killed on April 4 by an improvised explosive device in Afghanistan. A new policy that overturns an 18-year ban on news coverage of returning war dead gives families a choice of whether to admit the media to ceremonies at the Air Force Base.
12:30 a.m. ET, 4/6/09

The casket of Air Force Staff Sgt. Phillip Myers, of Hopewell, Va., who was killed Afghanistan on April 4 is transferred by an honor guard on Sunday, April 5, 2009 in Dover Air Force Base, Del. After receiving permission from the family, Myers marks the end of the ban on media news coverage of returning war dead was put in place 18 years ago.
12:28 a.m. ET, 4/6/09