John A. Dramesi

Who is John A. Dramesi?

Colonel John Arthur Dramesi is a retired U.S. Air Force officer who was held as a prisoner of war at the Hanoi Hilton in North Vietnam during the Vietnam War. Dramesi is one of only four members of the USAF to be twice awarded the Air Force Cross, the first for the mission on which he was shot down and captured, 2 April 1967, and the second for the six month period following his second escape and recapture, from May to November 1969, when he was beaten and tortured. He also received an award of the Silver Star for gallantry during an escape on 10 May 1967 and the month following his recapture, when he also beaten and tortured.

Dramesi is one of the very few captives who never broke under torture. He was held along with Senator John McCain and has criticized McCain's conduct as a prisoner and after release. McCain would later hail him as "one of the toughest guys I've ever met." Dramesi has also criticized the conduct of a number of his fellow POWs.