USAF Pilot Was Imprisoned With John McCain In Vietnam

Air Force Colonel (Ret) George E. "Bud" Day passed away early Saturday morning in Ft. Walton Beach, FL. He was 88 years old.

Wikipedia notes that Col. Day was a Medal of Honor recipient who served during WWII in the U.S. Marine Corps. Following that war, he attended Morningside College in his hometown of Sioux City, IA, and eventually earned a law degree from the University of South Dakota.

He joined the Army Reserve after WWII, and received a direct commission as a Second Lieutenant in the Iowa Air National Guard. He went into flight training, and flew two tours during the Korean War in Republic F-84 fighter-bombers.

He volunteered for service in Vietnam. He was shot down on August 26th, 1967 while flying an F-100F, breaking his arm in three places after the ejection.

He was a prisoner of war with now-Senator John McCain at the prison camp known as the "Hanoi Hilton." He was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Gerald Ford

Television station WJHG in Panama City, FL, reports that Day's wife, children and grandchildren were with him when he passed. A funeral is planned for Thursday in Pensacola, FL.

(Col. Day pictured in undated DoD photo)

FMI: www.af.mil