Operation Thunderhead: The True Story of Vietnam's Final POW Rescue Mission--And the Last Navy Seal Killed in Country

by Kevin Dockery

Book Overview

The war was all but over?but there was still one battle the United States had to fight? In the last year of the Vietnam conflict, even as American troops were leaving for home, there were still those fighting for their lives: prisoners of war being held in the Communist north. This is the incredible true story of a rescue mission that was classified Top Secret for years?Operation Thunderhead. The Navy SEALs and the Underwater Demolition Teams who...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0425223736
• ISBN13: 9780425223734
• Release Date: November 2008
• Publisher: Berkley Publishing Group
• Length: 294 Pages
• Weight: 1.00 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.0" x 9.3"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Grade 12 and higher

Customer Reviews

Powerful Story......disappointing ending

I was spellbound through the whole story. It felt like I was right there and it was leading up to something HUGE the whole time. Then it just ended! I felt cheated at the end. But I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys this genre, it was a great true story of some real American Heros!

Comments from an old SALT

This is a book that everyone...especialy the non believers that think the military just does nothing good... should read. It is a sad thing that such deeds get forgotten or overlooked due to the non release of documentation that is either politically incorrect or overly protected for so long (30 years). Even though they weren't mentioned specifically in this book, lets give a pat on the back to all that supported this mission.

Deeply insightful account of how and WHY Operation THUNDERHEAD was significant.

This little known operation gives tremendous insight into the capabilities of Naval Special Warfare (Navy SEALs) but more importantly WHY this mission was so significant. Without the thorough account of the true tortures endured by Dramesi and his fellow inmates in the Hanoi Hilton, the impetus of the rescue would be lost. Mr. Dockery brings us into the reality of the brutal lives of the POWs and why utimately the mission was scrubbed by the POWs themselves. He provides the key to the story that casual readers missed. The impact of what happened months and years before within the walls of the Hanoi Hilton was important and well told, as well as the description of the seaborne operation that resulted in Lt. Dry's death. Only Kevin Dockery's incredible research and unpresedented access to key participants allows this 360 degree view of the events leading up to and during Operation Thuderhead. This operation was far more than SEALs and SR-71 aircraft - it was the torture and tough decisions by American warriors captured in combat who were beaten and killed but never forgotten. Mr. Dockery aptly leads us through the story so in the end the reader fully understands why if the SEALs like LT Dry would have known what was at stake, they would have gladly swum up the Red River and kicked in the doors to their cells. In fact, they still would - and THAT is the true story. It is an excellent read of warriors and sacrifice told by a pro and tells the lengths America will go to bring our people home.

Highly Recomended

An amazing story from history, that was just recently declassified by the U.S. Government. The author explains the story of John Dramesi and the trials he went through as a P.O.W. in North Vietnam. The tortures he endured and the heroism of his attempts to escape. The Operation by U.S. forces to help rescue the prisoners had me on the edge of my seat. From beginning to end, this was the story of Operation Thunderhead. I would recommend this title to anyone with a passing interest in the Vietnam conflict, P.O.W.s or Navy SEALs!