Charles Frederic Klusmann was a Naval Aviator born on September 7, 1933, in San Diego, California. He joined the U.S. Naval Reserve on February 23, 1952, and began active service on March 18, 1953. Lieutenant Chuck is known for his extraordinary heroism and achievement for his role in the aerial fight during the Vietnam War and his escape from a communist prison camp in Laos. During his service, Chuck was deployed to the Gulf of Tonkin, as President Lyndon B. Johnson had ordered Klusmann and other Kitty Hawk aviators to gather intelligence information against the North Vietnamese and Pathet Lao troops in Laos.
Vietnam POW tells tale of imprisonment to ROTC students (Kevin Cheney)
A prisoner of war gave riveting details of his experience in Vietnam Thursday night to members of Purdue’s Tri-Service ROTC. Retired Air Force Col. Kevin Cheney always wanted to fly planes. On July 1, 1972, the jet Cheney, then Capt. Cheney, was flying was shot down.
