Admiral Jeremiah Denton passes

SJ sends us a link to the sad news that Admiral Jeremiah Andrew Denton has passed at the ripe young age of 89. More than seven years of his life were spent in a Vietnamese prison. From Wiki;

Denton served as United States Naval Aviator during the Vietnam War and was the Commanding Officer (CO) of Attack Squadron Seventy-Five (VA-75) aboard the aircraft carrier USS Independence (CVA 62). On 18 July 1965, then-Commander Denton, was leading twenty-eight planes flying an A-6A Intruder (Bureau Number 151577), off the Independence on a bombing mission with Lieutenant Bill Tschudy, his navigator/bombardier. Their jet was shot down over the city of Thanh Hoa in North Vietnam, and they were captured and taken prisoner by the North Vietnamese.

The rest of the story of his captivity is in his citation for his Navy Cross;

The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Navy Cross to Rear Admiral [then Commander] Jeremiah Andrew Denton, Jr. (NSN: 0-485087), United States Navy, for extraordinary heroism while serving as a Prisoner of War in North Vietnam from February 1966 to May 1966. Under constant pressure from North Vietnamese interrogators and guards, Rear Admiral Denton experienced harassment, intimidation and ruthless treatment in their attempt to gain military information and cooperative participation for propaganda purposes. During this prolonged period of physical and mental agony, he heroically resisted cruelties and continued to promulgate resistance policy and detailed instructions. Forced to attend a press conference with a Japanese correspondent, he blinked out a distress message in Morse Code at the television camera and was understood by United States Naval Intelligence. When this courageous act was reported to the North Vietnamese, he was again subjected to severe brutalities. Displaying extraordinary skill, fearless dedication to duty, and resourcefulness, he reflected great credit upon himself, and upheld the highest traditions of the Naval Service and the United States Armed Forces.

Rear Admiral Denton wrote a book in 1976 titled “When Hell was in Session” about his captivity which became a movie. He was also a Senator from Alabama 1981-1987, the first admiral to become a Senator and the first Republican from Alabama since Reconstruction. he lost in his reelection bid to Richard Shelby. In 2007, his wife preceded him in death after 61 years of marriage.

Category: Blue Skies, Real Soldiers