Retired Navy Cmdr. Everett Alvarez talks in May 2023 about his time as a prisoner of war during the Vietnam War. Alvarez was the first U.S. pilot shot down during the war. (Ken-Yon Hardy/Stars and Stripes)
WASHINGTON — Lawmakers are pushing for swift passage of legislation to award the Congressional Gold Medal — the nation’s highest civilian honor — to a Navy veteran who was the first aviator shot down in the Vietnam War and the second-longest held prisoner of war in U.S. history.
Retired Cmdr. Everett Alvarez Jr., now 86, was captured Aug. 5, 1964, while on a bombing mission near the North Vietnam-China border.
“I was in the very first raids into North Vietnam,” Alvarez said in an oral history recorded for the Library of Congress.
He was the first captured American during the war who was sent to the infamous North Vietnamese prison nicknamed the “Hanoi Hilton.” He survived beatings, torture and starvation during 3,113 days of captivity.
“Cmdr. Alvarez remained loyal to the United States and assisted other American prisoners of war,” according to the legislation.
Congress awards the gold medal to individuals and groups for significant achievements that influenced U.S. culture and history.
“I am humbled beyond belief,” Alvarez said. “There is no way I am able to express my profound appreciation for this recognition.”
Alvarez said he sees the award as not only recognizing his war experiences and determination to survive but also as commemorating the hundreds of other POWs who endured the brutal conditions of captivity during the Vietnam War.
The Everett Alvarez Jr. Gold Medal Act, with 301 co-sponsors, passed the House on unanimous consent in May.
“As the second longest-serving prisoner of war in the history of our nation, Cmdr. Everett Alvarez Jr. stands out as a symbol of American resiliency and selfless service,” said Rep. Jimmy Panetta, D-Calif., a Navy veteran who led the House bill.
Lawmakers now are urging swift adoption in the Senate, where the bill has collected 67 co-sponsors. Senate lawmakers are expected to take up the bill when Congress returns to session on Nov. 13.
“Cmdr. Alvarez is an American hero and remained a source of hope and encouragement for the other prisoners of war during his time in Vietnam,” said Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif, the bill’s sponsor in the Senate.“ Cmdr. Alvarez’s unwavering courage and bravery in the face of torture and isolation deserves the highest recognition in Congress.”
The legislation is pending a hearing in the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs. But the legislation also has enough co-sponsors to be discharged from committee for a vote, according to Padilla’s office.
Alvarez was the second-longest held American POW after Floyd Thompson, an Army colonel locked up for nine years in various locations in South Vietnam, Laos and North Vietnam.
Former POW Everett Alvarez Jr. reads a copy of Stars and Stripes as he relaxes in the hospital after his release from the Hanoi Hilton in 1973. (Defense Department)
Alvarez had been flying combat missions in 1964 from the USS Constellation, when the A-4 Skyhawk that he piloted was shot down.
“Unfortunately, I managed to put my airplane into the path of something. Everything started to come apart. I had to eject. There was no alternative,” he said in 2014.
“I recall the moment when I felt the tug of my parachute,” said Alvarez, who landed off the coast of Vietnam. He said he was surrounded by Vietnamese fishing boats and taken into custody by a heavily armed militia.
Alvarez was held for five years at the Hanoi Hilton, also known as Hoa Lo Prison. Alvarez later was moved to a second prison camp northwest of Hanoi nicknamed “Briarpatch,” which had no electricity, plumbing or running water.
Alvarez spent 8½ years as a prisoner of war and endured months of isolation. He was among 52 POWs paraded before angry crowds in Hanoi that beat and kicked them.
After his release in 1973, Alvarez continued his military career and completed 20 years of service. He was awarded the Silver Star Medal, two Legions of Merit and the Prisoner of War Medal, among other honors.
As a civilian, he earned his law degree and held leadership roles in the Peace Corps and the Veterans Administration, now the Department of Veterans Affairs.
