Tortured in notorious ‘Hanoi Hilton,’ 11 GIs were unbreakable

On September 9, 1965, Navy Cmdr. James Bond Stockdale was flying his A-4 Skyhawk on a mission over North Vietnam, just days after the Gulf of Tonkin incident, when his plane took fire and hurtled down. Forced to eject with seconds to spare, he landed with severe injuries: his left leg bent sideways by 60 degrees and his kneecap smashed; his left shoulder dislocated, rendering his arm useless; his back, he thought, likely was broken.

Other Publications You Might Be Interested In

William Burroughs, Vietnam POW

U.S. Air Force 1955-1976Cold War 1955-1976Vietnam War 1965-1973 (POW)William Burroughs was born on September 29, 1932, in Indianhead, Maryland. He entered the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in 1951 and was commissioned a 2d Lt in the U.S. Air Force on June 3, 1955. Lt Burroughs graduated from Undergraduate

Read More »

Why we remember (Jim Hickerson)

“On Earth as it is heaven.” It engulfed his mind as he stood there dirty, hungry and in pain. He struggled to hold his hands up against the wall. His knees shook as he spread his feet wide and tried with everything inside of him not to move a muscle,

Read More »

Potomac: MPT Salutes Local Hero (Michael Cronin)

Retired Navy Captain Michael Cronin graduated in 1963 from the Naval Academy from pilot training in Cecil Field, Fla. in 1965. He immediately deployed for Vietnam, proud to be serving in the U.S. Navy and protecting his country. He flew the A4 Skyhawk on 175 solo combat missions in which

Read More »