Floyd James Thompson Floyd James " Jim " Thompson ( July 8 , 1933 - July 16 , 2002 ) was the longest held prisoner of war in United States history , spending nearly nine years in captivity in Vietnam . Early life . Thompson worked for the A & P supermarket before he was drafted by the United States Army on June 14 , 1956 . Thompson was at first a very truculent , rebellious soldier , but then decided that he liked the military . After basic training at Fort Dix , New Jersey , Thompson decided to make the military his career . Military career . After completing Officer Candidate School , Thompson served stateside and also spent a year in Korea . He was stationed at Fort Bragg when he was recruited into the Army Special Forces as a Green Beret . Vietnam War . Captain Thompson went to Vietnam in December 1963 . Prior to his deployment , he hadn ' t heard of the country . He was to serve only a six - month tour of duty but was captured on March 26 , 1964 . He was released on March 16 , 1973 , 10 days short of 9 years . Capture . On March 26 , 1964 , the observation plane ( an L - 19 / O - 1 Bird Dog ) flown by Captain Richard L . Whitesides and U . S . Army Special Forces Captain Floyd J . Thompson was downed by small arms fire at about 20 kilometres from Thompson ' s Special Forces Camp near Quang Tri , South Vietnam . Thompson survived the crash , suffering burns , a bullet wound across the cheek and a broken back , and was quickly captured by the Viet Cong . Whitesides was never found . Aerial search and ground patrols failed to find any trace of the aircraft . The following day , an Army officer visited Thompson ' s home and told his pregnant wife Alyce that he was missing . The trauma sent her into labor and their son was born that evening . Prisoner of war . Thompson spent the next nine years as a prisoner of war , first at the hands of the Viet Cong ; he was later moved to the Hanoi prison system . During his captivity , he was tortured and starved , and suffered the mental anguish of being isolated from other US POWs . At one point , Thompson did not speak to another American for over five years . He was released in mid - March , 1973 in Operation Homecoming . Return to the United States . The years following his homecoming , however , were far from happy . Thompson was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel and then to full Colonel , but had missed the most important years of his military career while in prison . He didn ' t have any formal education beyond OCS and hadn ' t even had experience as a Company Commander . He had difficulty adjusting to a vastly changed peacetime Army . In addition , Thompson ' s marriage had been troubled even before his captivity , and his wife , believing him dead , had been living with another man at the time he was repatriated . He and his wife divorced in 1975 . Thompson ' s wife Alyce told author Tom Philpott that she believed prison had affected her husband ' s mind . She said he suffered from nightmares and was abusive towards both her and the children . Thompson later remarried , but divorced soon afterwards . Thompson was never able to form any kind of a relationship with his children . His daughters were only 6 , 5 and 4 when he left and his son was born the day of his capture . Only his eldest child barely remembered him . Sadly , Thompson said that one of the things that helped him cope with his brutal imprisonment was thinking of the fine family that awaited his return . Thompson eventually became completely estranged from all his children . He developed a very serious drinking problem and was in several military hospitals for treatment . In 1977 , Thompson attempted suicide with an overdose of pills and alcohol . His superiors told author Philpott that had it not been for Thompson ' s status as a hero , he would have been dismissed from service because of his alcoholism . In 1981 , while still on active duty , Thompson suffered a massive heart attack and also suffered a severe stroke . He was in a coma for months and was left seriously disabled . He was paralyzed on one side and could speak only in brief phrases for the rest of his life . In 1990 , Thompson ' s son Jim was convicted of murder and imprisoned for sixteen years . Retirement . A stroke that left James Thompson ' s left side paralyzed and his age contributed to his forced retirement from active duty in the Army . A ceremony was held for James Thompson in The Pentagon on January 28 , 1982 . Because of his recent stroke he had a hard time speaking so Michael Chamowitz , his close friend and lawyer , read his retirement speech . Later years and Death . Thompson moved to Key West in 1981 , after being medically retired from the U . S . Army , where he remained active in the community , according to the Monroe County Office of Veterans Affairs . On July 8 , 2002 , the staff of JIATF ( Joint Interagency Task Force ) East and some of his close friends threw Colonel Thompson a birthday party . He was described as being in high spirit and full of excitement . During the celebration he chose to quote General Douglas MacArthur : " Old soldiers never die , they just fade away " and then he was silent . Everyone in the room sat there quietly and knew that is how Colonel Thompson wanted to go as well . Eight days later Thompson was found dead in his Key West By the Sea Condominium on July 16 , 2002 at the age of 69 . His body was cremated and his ashes scattered at sea off the coast of Florida . Military decorations . In October 1974 James Thompson started to receive medals and awards in recognition for his service and sacrifice in Vietnam . In October 1974 South Vietnam was the first to honor James Thompson ’ s service and sacrifice with the country ’ s highest honor , the Vietnam Military Merit Medal the Vietnamese equivalent to the United States Medal of Honor . In recognition of his escape from Viet Cong POW camps Thompson received the Silver Star . For his nine years in captivity Thompson received the Bronze Star and Legion of Merit . The Bronze Star recognized his continuous resistance to the enemy . The Legion of Merit recognized his suffering for his nine years in captivity . On January 29 , 1982 a retirement ceremony was held for Thompson , James Thompson received the Distinguished Service Medal in appreciation for his 25 years of service to his country as an Army Officer . A ceremony held June 24 , 1988 in the White House honoring POW ' s from World War I , World War II , Korea and Vietnam . Two representatives were picked from each war to receive the Prisoner of War Medal . Thompson and Everett Alvarez were picked to represent POW ’ s from Vietnam .