WELCOME HOME - VIETNAM POW GROUP USAF PILOT - HANOI HILTON

[KASTAUFFER]

I am purposely not putting his name in the text of this thread so that it will not appear in a Google Search. I am not criticizing the family for not wanting to keep his medals, but I do not want to draw attention to his name either. Please do not add his name onto this thread.

 

On June 16, 1966 while on a reconnaissance mission over North Vietnam, an F-4C Phantom was hit by anti-aircraft fire and the 2 occupants of the aircraft became POWs of North Vietnam.

 

This is the story of the pilot.

 

Lets move ahead to the current date: I recently got a call concerning this grouping from a fellow forum member who knew it was for sale by the owner of Dan Swanson's Moving and Delivery in Tucson Arizona. Dan had contacted the family of this veteran about the group of material and asked them to come look at it. The general had died in 2015 and Dan had purchased a lot of material from the estate over the previous few years. Members of the family came out and looked at it and did not want the medals or paperwork . Dan was concerned that it not end up in the wrong hands. I contacted Dan and we made a deal and I told him that I would post a thread on this forum so that his memory and his service would be seen by hundreds if not thousands of people.

 

This pilot spend almost 7 years as a POW of the Vietnamese in the Hoa Lo POW camp in Hanoi, also known as the Hanoi Hilton. Many of the POWs who were held there went on to lead significant careers in public service such as James Stockdale ( MOH) and Senator John McCain. This man retired as a Brigadier General in the USAF after a 30 year career and had received multiple decorations based on his service as a POW in the camp.

 

Here in his own words is his statement about his capture and time as a POW:

 

I was born in Cleveland, Ohio in March of 1933. My parents and younger brother still reside there. While attending Ohio State University in 1954, I was married . After graduation in June 1955, I was called to active duty in the USAF. I gained my commission through the ROTC program at Ohio State. My duty assignments prior to Vietnam were: flight training at Moore AFB and Goodfellow AFB, Texas; Phillips Army Air Field on the Aberdeen Proving Grounds in Maryland; Patrick AFB, Florida; Sculthorpe, England; Phalsbourg AB, France; and Holloman AFB, New Mexico. My immediate family now includes my wife, two daughters, and a son. On 1 February 1966 my squadron departed the USA for assignment at Danang AB.

 

I was then the aircraft commander of an F4C Phantom fighter bomber. On June 13, 1966, while on an armed reconnaissance mission in the southern part of North Vietnam, my aircraft was hit by anti-aircraft fire and became uncontrollable. I ejected safely from low altitude (about 350 feet at 450 knots), but I sustained a compression fracture of the spine. The DRV used my Pilot Systems Operator and I as a traveling show until 29 June when we arrived in Hanoi and were thrown into Hoa Lo prison, more commonly known as the Hanoi Hilton. The DRV didn't wait until I got to Hanoi to begin their systematic torture. Despite what Jane Fonda says, it is a terrible thing to endure even when administered by "gentle people." I was a prisoner for 80 months, being released on 12 February 1973. During that period of time, I was either solo or in very small rooms for extended periods of time; subjected to torture on several occasions, and under constant pressure by my captors.

 

Faith in the Lord, a firm belief in the government and people of the United States of America, and complete confidence in our military are basically what kept me going. I never gave up for a minute. I am also confident that I will never again serve with a finer group of men.

 

My health is good and I plan to continue my Air Force Career and to fly once again.

 

To all of you whose thoughts, hopes, and prayers are with your country, your President, and your fighting men, God bless you . . . You are the finest people on the face of the Earth.

 

 

 

 

[KASTAUFFER]

[KASTAUFFER]

This is a scrapbook maintained by his wife concerning his release and ""Operation Homecoming" in 1973.

 

 

 

[KASTAUFFER]

 

 

 

[KASTAUFFER]

 

 

[KASTAUFFER]

 

[KASTAUFFER]

 

 

[KASTAUFFER]

[KASTAUFFER]

The next group of items in the scrapbook relate to the large celebration held at the White House for the returning POWs on February 12, 1973. Numerous celebrities attended and to this day was one of the largest gatherings of people at the White House. Over 1400 people attended including the POWs.

 

 

 

 

[KASTAUFFER]

 

 

[KASTAUFFER]

His Medals:

 

None of them are named. His DFC, Air Medal, and one Bronze Star were awarded in 1966. The rest were awarded after he came home in 1973. It is a mix of WWII era contract medals and new ones.

 

 

 

[KASTAUFFER]

 

 

[KASTAUFFER]

 

 

[KASTAUFFER]

The next group of photos are all of the award folders, certificates, and citations. It is an amazing group of paperwork. As a POW he earned the Silver Star, a Legion of Merit, 2 Bronze Stars, and a Purple Heart.

 

I will let his citations speak for themselves.

 

 

[KASTAUFFER]

 

 

[KASTAUFFER]

 

 

[KASTAUFFER]

 

[KASTAUFFER]

 

 

[KASTAUFFER]

 

 

[KASTAUFFER]

 

[KASTAUFFER]

 

 

 

 

[KASTAUFFER]

 

 

 

 

[KASTAUFFER]

 

 

[KASTAUFFER]

This next document is very interesting. It is a course that all the returning USAF POWs had to attend if they were remaining in the service. All the men in the photo had been POWs.

 

 

 

 

 

[KASTAUFFER]

In 1975-76 he attended the Air War College. Many of the documents, folders, and even the medal boxes had been damaged by the heat, moisture, and some had dried sand coating them.

The insects got to this one as well. Getting it all out of storage was important for its preservation. A few more years and the damage may have been irreversible.