Why we remember (Jim Hickerson)

Ernest Melvin Moore Jr. survived six years as a POW and was a Coronado Legend

He served his country proudly in Korea and Vietnam as a pilot in the US Navy. In 1967, at the age of 38, Captain Mel Moore was shot down over Vietnam. He spent 2,185 days in confinement at the notorious Hanoi Hilton — one week shy of six years. He

Linebacker II (Michael H. Labeau)

n December 1972—40 years ago this month—the US executed Linebacker II, the largest B-52 bombing campaign of all time. The period from Dec. 18 to Dec. 29 saw the huge USAF bombers mount shattering strikes on North Vietnamese railways, airfields, surface-to-air missile storage sites, petroleum dumps, and other infrastructure targets

Conroe Vietnam War veteran to share remarkable story 50 years after he regained freedom (James Ray)

Six years, nine months and four days — that’s the length of time 1959 Conroe graduate Col. James E. Ray spent as a prisoner of war in North Vietnam. He was shot down on Mother’s Day 1966 and was released two days before Valentine’s Day 1973. Upon his return home to

Five Vietnam War POWs Honored at AFA’s Air, Space & Cyber Conference

The Air & Space Forces Association recognized American prisoners of war during its 2023 Air, Space & Cyber Conference, as part of the association’s ongoing commemoration of the end of the Vietnam War. Of some 170 individuals who appeared on stage throughout the three-day conference in National Harbor, Md., five

Looking back to when Laurel welcomed home first Southeast Asia POW (Lawrence Bailey)

The specially modified, intelligence-gathering C-47 plane lifted off from Vientiane, the capital of Laos, March 23, 1961, and headed north toward Xieng Khouangville, a Communist-held area. The experienced Air Force crew was accompanied by Army Maj. Lawrence R. Bailey, a Laurel resident serving as the assistant Army attache in Vientiane.