He did not maintain it nearly to the extent you might think. I have a good friend here in town, Bill Hardman, who was an A-6 Bombadier. He was shot down over Vietnam in 1968 and spent several years in the Hanoi Hilton with McCain. According to Bill he was a weasel of Biblical proportions and was generally shunned by most of the Americans in that camp. He was good friends with several of the guards, however. I will leave the rest to your imagination.
That’s why I said …”for the most part” …
By the way, have any of the folks that spent time with McCain ever written a book that included this information? Needs to be broadcasted in the greatest way, especially now.
I also believe mccain was the ONLY viet nam P.O.W. that gained weight during captivity.
LEO T. PROFILET
Captain - United States Navy
Shot Down: August 21, 1967
Released: March 14, 1973
I am 46 years old now, a career Naval Officer with 26 years of continuous active service; a Naval Aviator since 1949. In 1950-51 I flew 98 missions in Korea in the venerable A-1 "Spad", a propeller driven attack aircraft. I have a BS in Aeronautical Engineering and am a graduate of the Naval War College. Cairo, Illinois is my birthplace, where I grew up to the age of 18. Then I attended Loyola University in New Orleans before starting flight training at Pensacola, Florida. I have four children, ages 16 to 23. My oldest, a daughter, is married. My family moved from Whidby Island, Washington in 1969 (two years after I was shot down) to Palo Alto, California. So they have been there four years now, which is by far a record for us.
In 1966 I took command of Attack Squadron 196, an A-6 Intruder squadron flying
from the USS Constellation. In August 1967 I was shot down on my 59th mission
while diving on a target just outside of Hanoi. My bombardier-navigator, Cdr. Bill Hardman, and I were captured immediately and taken quickly to the prison in Hanoi. I did not see Bill for the next 5 1/2 years, but we came out together on the Operation Homecoming flight from Hanoi to Clark AFB in March, 1973. During my years in Hanoi I never lost faith in the American people. When I learned of the tremendous support given to the POW/MIA cause, the many organizations who responded to the call of our wives and families, that wonderful bracelet program, the letter writing campaigns, the profoundly moving welcome home - I knew that my faith was right on. The strength of our beautiful nation comes from her people. I hope that all of us, especially our young people, will become as personally involved in the future of America as with the POW/MIA cause.
I thank all of America for getting us home with honor. Let us not forget that the real heroes are our families who went through years of torment and anguish. And remember that the families of the men MIA are still undergoing that torment and anguish. Also, let us not forget the thousands who did not survive, nor the men who came home wounded, some crippled for life. Theirs was a far greater sacrifice than mine.
Leo Profilet retired from the United States Navy as a Captain. He and his wife Sue resided in California until his death January 30, 2004. He is survived his wife, two sons, and two daughters. Burial Arlington National Cemetery, on 21 April 2004.