The Viet Nam Veterans of America Chapter 203 recognized POW John Sparks at its March meeting on Monday night.
In April, 1968, Mr. Sparks was flying a reconnaissance mission over North Viet Nam when his OV-1 Mohawk twin engine fixed wing aircraft was shot down. He was captured and spent five years in a Hanoi POW camp. He was released in March, 1973 and returned home two months later.
One of the most honored occasions that I’ve ever experienced was meeting a Vietnam War Veteran and P.O.W., who was held at the infamous Hanoi Hilton in North Vietnam for seven-and-a-half-years. I had just concluded a meeting with a major supplier (ALCOA) at the Hattiesburg Country Club in south Mississippi,
In an AAFES parking lot at Hickam AFB, Hawaii, rests a plaque dedicated to former POWs from the Vietnam war, including some from the 388th Fighter Wing. It’s easy to walk past plaques, but this one is worth stopping to consider. For nearly a decade before it moved to Hill
Ray Alcorn grew up on a farm in Pennsylvania. He served 30 years in the U.S. Navy including seven years as a prisoner of war. His last assignment before retirement as a Captain was as Dean of Students at the Naval War College. Alcorn and his wife, Karen, moved to
“I may be older, but I’m a fighter pilot,” he said, smiling, as he shared his story of perseverance before a crowd of Kisling NCO Academy students, Sept. 12, 2016. Retired Air Force Lt. Col. Melvin Pollack, Vietnam War veteran, was flying his 78th mission when he was shot down