War keepsakes connect the two hemispheres

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US Commander Walter Eugene Wilber, whose aircraft was shot down during the Vietnam War and he was detained for almost 5 years in Hoa Lo Prison, Hanoi.

In the war against American invaders from 1964 to 1973, a section of the old Hoa Lo Prison (built under the French domination in 19 century) was used to detain captured American pilots.

Keepsakes of late US pilot of the US Navy Walter Eugene Wilber at Hoa Lo Prison museum.

At the "Hanoi Hilton" (the way American pilots called the prison), American pilot prisoners had a chance to know better about the war, which they participated in. They also understood Vietnam's humanitarian policy toward them, prisoners of the war, they waged against a peace-loving nation.

On June 16, 1968, F-4 Phantom II aircraft, flown by two American pilots, including Naval Commander Walter, conducted a bombing mission against North Vietnam, was shot down and crashed onto Do Luong district of the central province of Nghe An. Walter Eugene Wilber managed to parachute and landed in a rice field of Thanh Tien commune while his teammate went missing.

Walter Eugene Wilber then was captured by the quasi-military local force and then was handed over to the Thanh Chuong District Military Command. Several days later, he was taken to Hoa Lo Prison.

Thomas Eugene Wilber, son of late US pilot of the US Navy Walter Eugene Wilber handing his father’s keepsakes to the Hoa Lo Prison museum.

During 5 years in Hoa Lo Prison, Walter received humane treatment and tolerance from Vietnamese officials and troops, who worked at the prison management board. As a result, he took many positive actions to end the unjust war of the United State in Vietnam.

Walter Eugene Wilber in 1973 was returned to the US by the Vietnamese Government under the Paris Accord. Keepsakes of the US pilot during his prison time in Hoa Lo, were also brought back to the US as a reminder of an unforgettable period of time in his military career.

And like many other American veterans who had fought in Vietnam, the Vietnam War had left a never-healed wound in his heart.

Over the past nearly 50 years, Walter wished to return to Vietnam and to see again his benefactors during the time he was in prison.

However, due to his poor health, Walter Eugene Wilber could not make it and he died in 2015.

Understanding the burning desire of Walter Eugene Wilber, his second son, Thomas, realized father’s wish. On January 17, Thomas has represented his family to donate his father’s keepsakes to the Hoa Lo Prison Museum.

The keepsakes include a pilot helmet of the US Naval Air Force that the US government provided for Wilber to participate in the war in 1968; a cup and two clothing items, which the pilot used in has prison time; a letter that Wilber wrote to his family from Hoa Lo prison on January 22, 1970, and a matchbox that the Vietnamese Government presented Wilber when he was released back to US in February 1973.

The collection also includes several documentary photo of Walter Eugene Wilber after his release.

Immediately after the ceremony, the Hoa Lo Prison museum has added his keepsakes to its collection themed "Life of American pilot prisoners in Hoa Lo Prison", helping visitors and researchers have an objective insight into the war’s context.

Senior Colonel Tran Trong Duyet, former head of the American pilots’ section of Hoa Lo Prison (in the period 1968-1973) said: "Under the wartime regulations, the daily ration for a Vietnamese Colonel (high-ranking military officer) cost 1.2 VND while an American pilot enjoyed a daily ration of 1.6 VND."

Speaking after handing his father’s keepsakes, Thomas said that his father was treated kindly provided with good health care and food during his time in the prison although the Vietnamese people had many difficulties because of the war.

My farther believed that the UAS should not have waged tat unjust war against Vietnam, Thomas Eugene Wilber said, adding that his father’s keepsakes will help make people from the two hemispheres be closer.