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Allan Russell Carpenter |
| Vietnam War, 1961-1975
Navy
VA-72, USS Independence (CVA/CV 62) and USS Franklin D. Roosevelt (CVB/CVA/CV 42)
Vietnam
Commander
Yes
ME
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Allan Carpenter served in Vietnam as a pilot assigned to reconnaissance, bridge bombing
and the always-dangerous "iron hand" missions. On an iron hand mission the goal was to
suppress or distract surface-to-air missiles, usually in support of large strikes or other
flights. On his last iron hand mission, in November 1966, he was forced to eject close to
enemy lines after taking critical damage to his A-4 Skyhawk. Badly injured in the
process of escaping his plane, Carpenter began a six-year nightmare in Walo Prison in
North Vietnam. He was finally released in February 1973 and reunited with his wife and
four children.
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