Commander George Coker was one of the “Alcatraz 11,” a group considered by the North Vietnamese to be the resistance leadership, even though he was a junior officer. The Alcatraz 11 were moved from Hao Lo to a separate facility “Alcatraz” in 1967. Among them were Jim Stockdale and Bob Shumaker. Like Shumaker, Coker was a key communications link in the command structure at Hao Lo and the other Hanoi prisons. He also has the
U.S. Air Force captain Gary Sigler recounted the story of his near-death and survival through captivity in the Hanoi Hilton.
American Veterans Center’s 2006 conference panel on Vietnam: The POW Experience, featuring Col. George “Bud” Day, Maj. Gen. Edward Mechenbier, Capt. Jack Fellowes, and Lt. Col. Anthony Marion Marshall.
Col. Edward L. Hubbard spent 2,420 days (over 6 years) as a prisoner of war after being shot down during combat missions over Northern Vietnam. Hubbard was an EB-66C Navigator with the 41st Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron flying out of Takhli Royal Thai AFB, Thailand during this time. Hubbard was released from captivity during Operation Homecoming on March 4, 1973. During Edward L. Hubbard’s captivity, he was able to teach his fellow POW’s tap code and
