Vietnam POW John Fer shares stories and insight based on his shoot-down, evasion, capture, interrogation, and internment in the Hanoi Hilton for 73 months. He was John McCain’s cellmate. Produced by Jarel and Betty Wheaton for Peninsula Seniors www.pvseniors.org
During the Vietnam War many United States soldiers were captured and held as prisoners of war (POW). Many soldiers reported being regularly tortured, and some were used for military propaganda. This segment from Iowa Public Television’s Iowans Remember Vietnam includes archival footage and interviews with Iowa veteran Harold Johnson. Johnson describes his role as a military jet pilot, his experience being captured, his days in captivity and his eventual release.
Captured and held in a prisoner of war camp for five years, Dr. Kushner’s tale of torture, abuse, survival, humanity, and perseverance was both sobering and moving. As our closing keynote speaker for VMI’s Vietnam symposium ‘The Vietnam War at 50,’ our audience leaves on a powerful note among the several personal stories they heard today.
The actual story of Prisoners of War (POWs) left behind in previous wars is quite documented but became obscured by hoax POW pictures, small time scams, and other diversions. This is the story of those POWs left behind in Laos and Vietnam, drawn on facts from government published reports and official testimony from high-level figures such as former U.S. Defense Secretary and CIA Director James Schlesinger who testified under oath that POWs remained behind in
