Former POW and U.S. Air Force MAJ Richard Eugene Bolstad (Captured 6 Nov 65) at the microphone salutes the people who came to greet his return.

‘Yankee air pirate!’ — Air Force pilot shot down over Vietnam lived to tell the tale (George Rose)

It’s an indelible image of the Vietnam era: George Alan Rose, then 30, stands on a rain-slicked tarmac. The Air Force fighter pilot has just been released from captivity in North Vietnam. His wife, Becky, wraps her arms around him. Their son, Glen, gazes up at his father and reaches for

Seven years in Hanoi’s prisons did not dim Robbie Risner’s fighting spirit (Larson, Risner)

T he picture on the Time magazine cover for April 23, 1965, was Air Force Lt. Col. Robinson Risner. The cover story, “The Fighting American,” featured 10 US military members in Vietnam, with fighter pilot Risner—a rising star in the Air Force—foremost among them.“At the time it was a great

560th FTS honors Vietnam POWs at Freedom Flyer Reunion (Richard Bates, Gregg Hanson)

The 560th Flying Training Squadron honored three former Vietnam veterans during the 47th Annual Freedom Flyer Reunion at Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph March 25-26. The annual reunion allows Air Force combat pilots who were shot down in the Vietnam War, many suffering long periods in captivity as prisoners of war,

Vietnam War Fighter Pilot Presents His Story of Six Years as a POW (Ken Cordier)

On July 1, retired USAF Col. Ken Cordier recalls his amazing story of patriotism and endurance as a fighter pilot and POW during the Vietnam War. Cordier was forced to eject from his F-4C Phantom jet when it was hit by a surface-to-air missile on Dec. 2,1966. He was immediately

Robert Shumaker: An extended stay at the Hanoi Hilton

Prior to his POW experience, Robert Shumaker had other memorable moments in the service. During one mission in the Mediterranean, multiple mechanical malfunctions forced him to freefall 2,000 feet before he could open his parachute. He was also one of the top 32 candidates for NASA’s Apollo program during the