Thomas J . H . Trapnell Thomas John Hall " Trap " Trapnell ( November 23 , 1902 - February 13 , 2002 ) was a United States Army general . Trapnell survived the Bataan Death March and the sinking of two transportation ships during World War II , put down a rebellion of POW s in the Korean War , was the top US advisor to the French during the French Indochina War , and advised against US involvement in Vietnam . He rose to the rank of Lt . General before retirement and , at the time of his death , was the oldest living member of the Philippine Scouts . Trapnell was also an uncle of noted hijacker , Garrett Brock Trapnell . Early life . Thomas Trapnell was born in Yonkers , New York to Joseph Trapnell and Laura Kennedy . The Trapnell ' s were a prosperous and distinguished family originally from the $ 3 area whose roots stretched back to early Colonial America . One brother , Walter Scott Kennedy Trapnell , rose to the rank of Commander in the U . S . Navy during World War II , while another brother , William Holmes Trapnell , was a prominent attorney . A cousin , Frederick M . Trapnell , was a famous naval test pilot who retired from the Navy as a Vice Admiral . Several other cousins also served as commissioned officers in the Armed Forces . After graduating from Episcopal High School in Alexandria , Virginia in 1923 , Trapnell attended the United States Military Academy at West Point , NY . Known as the " warhorse of the West Point backfield , " he was an All - America halfback in football - where he teamed with future Hall of Famer Chris Cagle . In 1926 , in one of West Point ' s best years , Trapnell participated in a memorable game against Navy that tied at 21 - 21 . The match was played at Soldier Field in Chicago - the only time either team has played that venue . Army suffered only one loss that entire season ( to Notre Dame ) . Trapnell was also a top rated lacrosse player who rose to the captaincy of the Army team . His first brush with public notoriety came when his crew defeated the highly - rated team from Hobart College captained by his younger brother , William . The characteristically athletic and competitive Trapnells did their best to outshine each other as evidenced by one report : Trapnell graduated in 1927 and was commissioned as a platoon leader in the 11th Cavalry Regiment . During this time , he served under two future generals , Jonathan Wainwright and George Patton . In 1937 , he was promoted to captain ; two years later he was assigned to the Philippine Scouts . While in the Philippines , Trapnell was instrumental in recruiting Sofia Adamson , future founder of the Pacific Asia Museum in Los Angeles and co - founder of Adamson University in Manila , to the staff of Gen . Douglas MacArthur . He also became a star polo player . Trapnell was promoted to major and was made XO of the 26th Cavalry Regiment . Service during World War II . In 1941 , the Japanese invaded the Philippines , routing combined U . S . - Filipino defensive forces . During their withdrawal into the Bataan Peninsula in December , Trapnell , commanding a unit of the 26th , fought a desperate rear - guard action that included the last tactical cavalry charge of the U . S . Army . Using a medical truck to block one of the bridges used by retreating Fil - Am force and setting it afire , Trapnell then remained at this position under constant fire until it was rendered unpassable . Although he had a command car with which to beat a hasty retreat , he instead withdrew slowly with a picked force retrieving wounded soldiers along the way . For this engagement he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross and commended by Gen . MacArthur : Taken prisoner in April 1942 along with remaining U . S . forces , Trapnell endured months of horrific conditions at Camps O ' Donnell and Cabanatuan . While interned , he was promoted to lieutenant colonel . In December , 1944 , he was transported , along with 1 , 620 other prisoners , on the notorious POW hell ship , " Oryoku Maru " . U . S . dive - bombers , unaware of the ship ' s status , attacked and sunk the vessel . Trapnell survived only to fall victim to a repeated attack the following year . This time , United States Navy aircraft attacked and disabled the " Enoura Maru " . He and the approximate 950 survivors of the two sinkings were placed aboard the " Brazil Maru " but only 550 survived the journey to Japan . In August 1945 , Trapnell was liberated from Hoten POW camp in Manchuria by Russian troops . At the time , his once athletic , six - foot frame had been reduced to less than 100 pounds . Upon his return to the United States , Trapnell attended the Command and General Staff College . Afterward , he completed Airborne School and assumed command of the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment , 82nd Airborne Division at Ft . Bragg , North Carolina . On May 8 , 1948 , Trapnell led the 505th as part of a record - setting exercise that saw 2 , 200 paratroopers travel some 500 miles to make a jump at Camp Campbell , Kentucky . Service in Southeast Asia and beyond . In 1951 , Trapnell was promoted to the rank of Brigadier General and placed in command of the 187th Airborne Regimental Combat Team . In November of that year , the 187th made a " simulated combat drop " , landing 3 , 000 troops and 100 , 000 lbs of equipment in South Korea during ' Operation Showoff , ' a demonstration of wartime airlift capability . From May to June , 1952 , the 187th under Trapnell was instrumental in suppressing the rebellion of 80 , 000 Chinese and North Korean prisoners at the Koje - do Island POW camp . Some 40 prisoners were killed during the uprising which had been fomented by communist leaders attempting to disrupt truce negotiations . From 1952 to 1954 , Maj . Gen . Trapnell headed the U . S . advisory mission in French Indochina , leaving just before Ho Chi Minh ' s victory at Dien Bien Phu . While serving as the chief advisor , he issued a series of reports to his superiors in which he predicted that the French would not be able to defeat the communist insurgency . Trapnell was replaced by Maj . Gen . John W . O ' Daniel and returned to the United States for a succession of commands : the recently reactivated 4th Armored Division at Ft . Hood , Texas from 1954 to 1955 and the 82nd Airborne Division from 1955 - 1956 . Trapnell returned to South Korea in 1958 commanding I Corps for two years before becoming the Chief of Staff to Gen . Isaac White , Commander - in - Chief , U . S . Army Pacific . In 1960 , after briefly commanding Third U . S . Army at Ft . McPherson , Georgia , he took command of both the XVIII Airborne Corps and the Strategic Army Corps at Ft . Bragg . While there , Trapnell presided over the dedication of the Airborne Trooper statue in September 1961 . He also strongly advocated for the joint forces reaction force that became Strike Command . In 1961 , LT General Trapnell was in South Vietnam where he advised President John F . Kennedy against U . S . involvement . Presciently gauging the eventual swing of U . S . public opinion and weighing the organizational success and popularity of Minh , Trapnell concluded that the Vietnamese communists were waging a " clever war of attrition . " While he supported holding the line against communist expansion in Asia , he nevertheless believed that a " military solution in Indochina [ was ] not possible . " Trapnell ' s final command came in 1961 . In that year , SAC and Tactical Air Command were unified as Strike Command ; Trapnell once again assumed command of Third Army . He retired in 1962 and was nominated to hold the rank of general in retirement . Trapnell later served as an advisory board member of the Center for Internee Rights in Florida advocating for just treatment of US POW ' s and fair compensation from holding nations . Family . Trapnell was married to his first wife , Alys Snow , from 1929 until her death in 1953 . Alys had relocated to the Philippines with her husband when he was posted there but returned to the United States " when the Army wives were evacuated " in May , 1942 . His second marriage , to Elizabeth Elder , lasted from 1956 to her death in 2001 . He had no children . Like many other males in his family , Trapnell was known as " Trap " from his last name . As such , Trapnell became the first person whose nickname appeared in an official War Department record ( Communiqué 69 ) : An article in the " New York Times " implied that this may have been to engender feelings of comradery among U . S . servicemen . Trapnell died of heart failure at the Fairfax retirement facility at Ft . Belvoir , Virginia . Awards . Among Gen . Trapnell ' s decorations are the following : He has also been awarded the following non - US decorations :