At the age of eighteen, armed with a dream of flying and the desire to serve his country, Norman Gaddis enlists in the Army Air Corps in the months following the bombing of Pearl Harbor. After twenty-four years of service and seventy-two combat missions, he is shot down while in flight in an F-4 Phantom over Hanoi. He spends the next 2,124 days as a prisoner of war in the infamous Hoa Lo Prison, better known as the Hanoi Hilton.This true story follows Retired Brigadier General Norman C. Gaddis through his journey as he endures a thousand days of solitary confinement, physical and mental torture and nearly six years held captive as a POW. Relying on skills gained through his years of training and his love of and faith in both family and country he not only survives, but maintains his sanity and his honor. This is a story of strength, integrity and patriotism; a tale of a truly great American.
The Jack Van Loan Story: In His Own Words
Jack Van Loan was a United States Air Force fighter pilot. In 1967, he was flying as wingman for Colonel Robin Olds when his F-4 Phantom jet was shot down. He spent six years as a prisoner of war in North Vietnam. Alongside such legends as Robbie Risner, James Stockdale,