I just finished reading "The Forgotten 500" about the Halyard Mission and it was really interesting. Although it was all true, the book read like a novel and not just a reference book. Would highly recommend it to those interested in WWII military history.
Also, of those airmen shown in the 2004 photos on the website that F-117A posted, I think that only Art Jibilian is still left alive today of the rescued American Airmen.
I was lucky enough to have talked with both Major Richard Felman (Head of the Rescued Airmen) and Nick Lalich (American OSS officer on the Mission) many years ago about the battle for formal public recognition of the Halyard Mission. But even back then, both Felman and Lalich seemed well aware of how organized & formidable the opposition to recognition was. Felman said that the thing that angered him most was that most of the opposition to public recognition of Halyard were "immigrants who fought on the Nazi side of WWII and yet, the (expletive deleted)US State Department was listening to the Nazis and not to the American Airmen who risked their lives fighting them!"
Last Spring, Arthur Jibilan was interviewed for 6 hours by the crew of Fox's "War Stories with Oliver North", for a supposedly "upcoming episode". Then, two weeks before it was supposed to air, Jibilan got a call that they pulled the episode. Supposedly (mumble, mumble) didn't have budget (mumble, mumble) to do "more research" -- uh, might use his interview for something else (mumble, mumble.) Yeah, right. I am sure that no political strings were pulled to get it dropped -- uh, huh.
Hi Bokababe, actually Arthur Jibilian was not one of the rescued American airmen — he is the last living O.S.S. veteran of the Halyard Mission. He was the radioman. I have just submitted a post about Jibilian and his return to Pranjani, Serbia for the first time in 60 years when the plaque honoring the American and Serbian veterans of Halyard was dedicated in September of 2004.
There are a few remaining rescued airmen still living who continue to fight the battle to get this wonderful, magnificent story told and the proper honor paid to the Serbs who saved their lives.
Take care,
Ravnagora