Chained Eagle: The Heroic Story of the First American Shot Down over North Vietnam

Series Info, Title Page, Copyright, Dedication, Acknowledgments

n i limn j i fli n CHAINEDEAGLE SERIES EDITORS Walter J. Boyne and Peter B. Mersky Aviation Classics are inspired nonfictional and fictional accounts that reveal the human drama of flight. The series covers every era of military and civilian aviation, is internationalin scope, and encompasses flying in all of its diversity. Some of the books are well-known bestsellers, and others are superb but unheralded titles that deserve a wideraudience. Other Titles in the Aviation Classics Series Ploesti: The Great Ground-Air Battle of 1 August 1943 by James Dugan and Carroll Stewart Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo by Capt. Ted W. Lawson Operation Overflight: A Memoir of the U-2 Incident by Francis Gary Powers with Curt Gentry The Heroic Story of the First American Shot Down over North Vietnam EVERETT ALVAREZ, JR., and ANTHONY S. PITCH Potomac Books, Inc. Washington, D.C. CHAINED EAGLE Originally published in 1989 by Donald !. Fine, Inc. Copyright© 1989 by Everett Alvarez, Jr.,and Anthony S. Pitch. Published in 2005 in the United States by Potomac Books, Inc. (formerly Brassey's, Inc.). All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Alvarez, Everett, 1937Chained eagle : the heroic story of the first American shot down over North Vietnam / Everett Alvarez, Jr. and Anthony S. Pitch.—1st ed. p. cm.—(Aviation classics) Originally published: New York : D.I. Fine, c!989. ISBN 978-1-57488-558-3 (alk. paper) 1. Alvarez, Everett, 1937- 2. Vietnamese Conflict, 1961-1975—Prisoners and prisons, North Vietnamese. 3. Vietnamese Conflict, 1961-1975—Personal narratives, American. 4. Prisoners of war—United States—Biography. 5. Prisoners of war—Vietnam—Biography. I. Pitch, Anthony. II. Title. III. Aviation classic series (Washington D.C.) DS559.4.A48 2005 959.704'37'092273_dc22 [B] 2005043032 Printed on acid-free paper that meets theAmerican National Standards Institute Z39-48 Standard. Potomac Books, Inc. 22841 Quicksilver Drive Dulles, Virginia 20166 First Edition 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 TO THE MEN WHO SUFFERED CAPTIVITYAS PRISONERS OF WAR IN NORTH VIETNAM, WHO SHARED THE PAINFUL EXPERIENCE, WHO CAME HOME WITH THEIR DIGNITY AND PERSONAL INTEGRITY INTACT AND TO THOSE WHO DID NOT RETURN. TO THEIR LOVED ONES WHO WAITED AND ENDURED. AND TO THOSE WHO STILL WAIT. This page intentionally left blank ACKNOWLEDGMENTS FOR THE HELP I RECEIVED IN PREPARING THIS BOOK, I want to thank my former cell mates from the POW camps in North Vietnam who graciouslygave their time to relive painful memories in order to substantiate events and circumstances, namely Lt. Col. Thomas Barrett, USAF (Ret); Lt. Col. Kyle Berg, USAF (Ret); Capt. David Carey, USN (Ret); Capt. Gerald Coffee, USN (Ret); and Capt. William Metzger, Jr. USN. I want to thank my friend, Capt. John Nicholson, USN (Ret), who wasflyingwith me the day I was shot down, and who never gave up on me. I am eternally grateful to my Mom and Dad, and to my sisters, Delia and Madeleine, for reliving painfully emotional experiences a decade and a half after my return from Vietnam. I never knew their story, and they neverknew mine, until now. I am grateful to my aunt Cecilia and cousins Linda and Albert for the time they took to assist with the manuscript and recreate events, and to the extended Sanchez family for their supportive efforts over the years, especially the long, long hours spent collecting signatures in the petition drives. I want to thank Tony Pitch for his strong commitment and dedication to this effort over the past three years. Finally, I want to give special thanks to my wife, Tammy, and my sons, Marc and Bryan, for their patience and understanding. Most of what appears in this book was new to them. Things they learned of their husband and dad were from a different time, a different place. I owe all to Tammy, to whom I am lucky to be married, for if it had not been for her urgingand steadfast support this story would not have been told. Everett Alvarez, Jr. For their guidance towards overall improvement of the early draft manuscripts , and...