This airman was one of only two POWs to survive captivity in World War II and Vietnam
Like a lot of men who turned 18 during World War II, Richard Paul Keirn signed up to do his duty with the U.S. military. His choice was the U.S….
How Naval Aviator Charles Klusmann escaped a vicious POW camp
Charles Frederic Klusmann was a Naval Aviator born on September 7, 1933, in San Diego, California. He joined the U.S. Naval Reserve on February 23, 1952, and began active service…
The last American prisoner in Afghanistan, a Navy vet, released in swap
On September 19, 2022, the White House announced the release of the last American prisoner in Afghanistan, Mark Frerichs, from Taliban captivity. The Navy veteran was working as a civilian…
Everything you need to know about National POW/MIA day
Established in 1979 through a proclamation signed by President Jimmy Carter, National POW/MIA Recognition Day is an annual event held on the third Friday of September. This event is usually held at the Pentagon and is often observed at military inst…
Did this British soldier have 9 lives?
How many times can a person come close to death, without actually succumbing to that ill fate? In the case of one British soldier, the number grew until it was…
This flag made by a WWII POW is in the Smithsonian Museum
In the early days of the U.S. entry into World War II, U.S. Army Cpl. Joseph “Jose” O. Quintero was stationed on the Philippine Island of Corregidor with the 60th…
This Marine veteran was captured by terrorists, fought back and lived to come home
When deployed in regions like the Middle East or Africa where Al Qaeda, ISIS and other terrorist groups roam freely, there is an unofficial and often rarely spoken rule among…
The Holocaust caused German POWs to fight against the Axis
During World War II, more than 425,000 German prisoners of war were held in some 700 camps across the United States. Some of them did their duty to try and escape, but most spent the remainder of their war in these camps, entertaining themselves how…
The first US casualty of the Gulf War was a downed pilot
U.S. Navy Lt. Cmdr. Scott Speicher was flying his F/A-18 Hornet 100 miles west of Baghdad on Jan. 17, 1991. It was just minutes into the first night of Operation Desert Storm, the U.S.-led coalition’s offensive to expel the Iraqi Army from Kuwait. …
These fighter pilots literally pushed their wingmen to safety
The bonds that members of the military make with their comrades during their service are unlike any other. There’s a special kind of trust and faith that you have in a person that you would risk your life for and know would do the same for you. Fig…