Lance P. Sijan

Lance Sijan enlisted in the U.S. Air Force Reserve on June 30, 1960, and attended the U.S. Naval Academy Prep School from July 21, 1960, to March 23, 1961. Sijan entered the U.S. Air Force Academy in June 1961 and graduated and was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force on June 9, 1965. He next entered Undergraduate Pilot Training and was awarded his pilot wings in August 1966. Sijan completed combat crew training in the F-4 Phantom II at the 479th Tactical Fighter Squadron, George AFB, California, and began flying combat missions in Southeast Asia with the 480th Tactical Fighter Squadron at Da Nang AB in the Republic of Vietnam in July 1967. On November 9, 1967, Lieutenant Sijan was forced to eject over North Vietnam while flying his 52nd combat mission. Even though he was badly injured, he managed to evade capture for 46 days before being taken as a Prisoner of War on December 25, 1967. Sijan managed a brief escape but was quickly recaptured and taken to Hanoi.