National Geographic Society

  • Connect:

Vietnam POWs: McCain & Brace

Published
  • Former US Navy pilot, Senator John McCain, was forced to eject during a raid over Hanoi only to get caught after landing in a lake in Vietnam. He still suffers from injuries he sustained in 1967 when he ejected from his plane.
  • Ex-marine pilot, Ernet Brace, was capture deep in the Laotian jungle. He ended up being the longest serving civilian prisoner of the Vietnam War.
  • Ernie in his aircraft right before he gets caught. In the background you see his deck is decorated with family pictures. Eight years prior to being caught, he is set to fly a covert supply mission to a secret CIA base that is deep in the Laotian jungle. Little did he know that the base he was heading for has been ambushed by forces supporting the North Vietnamese. It is then that he is capture and led off into the jungle.
  • Two soldiers preparing to question Ernie. They expect him to admit he is an agent of the US military.
  • In the jungle with threes soldiers, Ernie is tied up to a tree and being threatened with a gun. The Vietnamese Army want Brace to admit being an agent for the US military. The North Vietnamese commander refuses to accept his answer and puts Brace in front of a firing squad, only to decide at the last second to keep him alive to use as a bargaining chip.
  • After many failed attempts to escape, Ernie is buried up to his waist. He is buried up to his neck in dirt and left for eight days without food or water.
  • Light comes through Ernies cell windown. He looks discouraged. At his lowest point, Brace is moved to a prison in Hanoi and placed in solitary confinement. It is there that he hears tapping on the wall. He then realizes that it's code from another prisoner in the cell next to him. Turns out to be another pilot shot down in the war, John McCain.
  • John Mccain looking desperate inside his cell. He taps to communicate with his fellow prisoner, Brace. He is the first American to communicate with Brace after 3 years of his imprissionment.
  • After being discovered communicating in their jail cells, Ernie and John blind folded in the back of a truck, with soldiers looking over them.

  • Senator John McCain

    Photograph by National Geographic Channels

    Former U.S. Navy pilot Senator John McCain was forced to eject during a raid over Hanoi only to get caught after landing in a lake in Vietnam. He still suffers from injuries he sustained in 1967 when he ejected from his plane.

  • Ernie Brace

    Photograph by National Geographic Channels

    Ex-marine pilot, Ernest Brace, was captured deep in the Laotian jungle. He ended up being the longest serving civilian prisoner of the Vietnam War.

  • Top Secret Mission

    Photograph by National Geographic Channels

    Ernie in his aircraft right before he gets caught. In the background you see his deck is decorated with family pictures. Eight years prior to being caught, he is set to fly a covert supply mission to a secret CIA base that was deep in the Laotian jungle. Little did he know that the base he was heading for had been ambushed by forces supporting the North Vietnamese. It is then that he is captured and led off into the jungle.

  • Prepping for the Interrogation

    Photograph by National Geographic Channels

    Two soldiers preparing to question Ernie. They expect him to admit he is an agent of the U.S. military.

  • Bargaining Chip

    Photograph by National Geographic Channels

    In the jungle with three soldiers, Ernie is tied up to a tree and threatened with a gun. The Vietnamese Army wanted Brace to admit being an agent for the U.S. military. The North Vietnamese commander refused to accept his answer and put Brace in front of a firing squad, only to decide at the last second to keep him alive to use as a bargaining chip.

  • Buried Alive

    Photograph by National Geographic Channels

    After many failed attempts to escape, Ernie is buried up to his waist. He is buried up to his neck in dirt and left for eight days without food or water.

  • Hope Deminishes

    Photograph by National Geographic Channels

    Light comes through Ernie's cell window. He looks discouraged. At his lowest point, Brace is moved to a prison in Hanoi and placed in solitary confinement. It is there that he hears tapping on the wall. He then realizes that it's code from another prisoner in the cell next to him.Turns out to be another pilot shot down in the war, John McCain.

  • Tapping in Jail

    Photograph by National Geographic Channels

    John McCain looking desperate inside his cell. He taps to communicate with his fellow prisoner, Brace. He is the first American to communicate with Brace after three years of his imprisonment.

  • Moving the POWs

    Photograph by National Geographic Channels

    After being discovered communicating in their jail cells, Ernie and John are blindfolded in the back of a truck, with soldiers looking over them.

1 comments
  Livefyre
Newest | Oldest
Nguyen Hai Minh
Nguyen Hai Minh

Vietnamese soldies often wore ''dep cao su'' (sandals made from black rubber); and they were lean.