50 Years Ago
■Mrs. Mary Cutter, 211 Elm St., grandmother of Capt. James Cutter, prisoner of war in North Vietnam, reported this morning that she has learned her grandson will be among the last prisoners to be returned to the U.S. “He hasn’t been there (as a POW) as long as some,” Mrs. Cutter conceded. “He’s only been there about a year.”
It was supposed to be a routine mission, a “milk run” in the words of George Coker, who was serving on his 55th missions in Vietnam as a bombardier/navigator. Usually, his missions consisted of flying over Vietnam from the aircraft carrier USS Constellation and bombing strategic points like bridges and
Hey Nashville. I’m Gary Estwick. One of my many hats at The Tennessean is race and culture editor. I want to share a story. I’ll never forget reporter Danielle Dreilinger’s message when she let us know she made contact with our first Vietnam War veteran. For me, the crowning achievement of our
“Major Carl Light Pistol 02 described the incident involving Capt Lasiter as follows: ‘As we approached a point about 30 miles west of the target, I saw Pistol Four burst into flames and immediately afterward a MiG-21 approached from his six o’clock position and pulled up and to the left
The morning he flew his 266th mission over Vietnam, Air Force Capt. Tony Marshall only knew the pilot in the seat in front of him, Capt. Steve Cuthbert, by reputation. Tall and thin with a shock of sandy blond hair, Cuthbert never suffered a lack of confidence flying the F-4
On June 27, 1972, U.S. Air Force Capt. David E. Baker flew his O-2 Skymaster over Cambodia in an attack on North Vietnamese supply stashes. As a forward air controller during this Vietnam War mission, he traveled low and slow, marking targets and coordinating airstrikes in his prop-driven plane. The