Category: POWs - Prisoners of War
34 years ago, Vietnam POWs released and returned to America
Non sibi sed patriae, "not self but country", is often mentioned as an unofficial motto of the US Navy. Being a Marine, I have always been more partial to Semper Fidelis, but I have had the honor and privilege of serving in the company of Navy men for whom that motto is a way of life. My former cellmate in Vietnam, John McCain, is one of those men. On March 14, 1973, John McCain and hundreds of other POWs were released from Hanoi and began the trip home. I will never forget the feeling of relief and joy upon stepping into an American aircraft with my fellow countrymen to begin that journey home.
by hawaiireporter :: 2007-03-15 :: POWs - Prisoners of War
DeRussy enshrines Vietnam POW -- Gallery of Heroes
Captain Humbert Versace, the first Army soldier to receive the Medal of Honor posthumously for his actions while being held as a POW of the Viet Cong, will be inducted into the U.S. Army Museum's Gallery of Heroes at Fort DeRussy. A Green Beret, Versace was wounded and taken POW on Oct. 29, 1963, with two other soldiers. He was serving as an intelligence adviser for the Military Assistance Advisory Group, in Ca Mau in the Mekong Delta. For the next two years, they were imprisoned in bamboo cages size of 6x2x3 feet. He tried to escape 3 times - the first time on his stomach since he was unable to walk because of the bullet wounds.
by starbulletin :: 2006-10-17 :: POWs - Prisoners of War
A Marine Vietnam War Prisoner of war to speak
A Marine Vietnam War vet and pow survivor James H. Warner to speak at the POW⁄MIA morning colors ceremony. Once his Naval Flight Officer training was complete, he volunteered for duty in Vietnam and was sent there in 1967. While deployed, he was assigned to VMFA-323 and flew more than 100 missions before being shot down just north of the Demilitarized Zone, on Friday, Oct. 13. "It was odd that it was Friday the 13th, the day I was shot down. My commanding officer, Capt. Richard Kerr, jokingly made the comment prior to my mission that it was a cursed assignment." Kerr lost his life that same day inside a bunker when it was hit with a katushya rocket.
by dcmilitary :: 2006-09-16 :: POWs - Prisoners of War
Vietnam War Pilot POW in China -- Honored a second time
Navy lieutenant commander Bob Flynn was the bombardier/navigator on an A6 bomber that was shot down by a missile from an enemy aircraft on Aug 21, 1967, after bombing Hanoi. 3 U.S. bombers were attacked by 8 enemy aircraft. "Of the two planes shot down, I was the only survivor. Missile blew the left wing off our airplane." Flynn, who was seriously injured, said he is sure he was at least 15 miles from the Chinese border. Local militia took him to a North Vietnamese military barracks staffed by Chinese troops, and he then was taken to China. Houston is honoring him for the second time for his service in the Vietnam War, and his 5½-year ordeal as a POW in China.
by winonadailynews :: 2006-07-30 :: POWs - Prisoners of War
Vietnam war hero and Air Force Colonel remembered
Colonel Laird Guttersen retired from the Air Force in 1974 after 33 years of military service. More than five years was spent in a North Vietnam PoW camp after his fighter jet was shot down. He was thrown into the spotlight in 1973 when he was one of nearly 600 POW's released in a much-publicized event referred to as "Operation Homecoming." A framed picture of him upon his arrival won a Pulitzer Prize. As a prisoner, his jaw and shoulders were dislocated and he spent more than two years in solitary confinement. "He would imagine himself on some beach or some place that was beautiful to him instead of where he was."
by kvoa :: 2006-07-01 :: POWs - Prisoners of War
1st POW Killed In Vietnam Is Given Honors, Medals
The Viet Cong executed Harold George Bennett 41 years ago, after he injured a soldier while trying to escape from a prison camp for the third time. Bennett was the first U.S. prisoner of war put to death during the Vietnam War. A fellow soldier documented his heroism, but recognition efforts stalled. Recently his family was presented with a Combat Infantryman's Badge, Vietnam Service Medal, Prisoner of War Medal and Purple Heart. "In the jungles of Vietnam, he displayed courage before and after he was captured by the Viet Cong. He twice called off helicopter pilots who were attempting to rescue him because he wanted to save them from being shot down."
by washingtonpost :: 2006-04-22 :: POWs - Prisoners of War