The rescue of Bat 21 Bravo, the call sign for Iceal "Gene" Hambleton (a navigator aboard an EB-66C aircraft shot down behind North Vietnamese lines), was the "largest, longest, and most complex search-and-rescue" operation during the Vietnam War. Five additional aircraft were shot down during rescue attempts, directly resulting in the deaths of 11 airmen, the capture of two others, and another airman trying to evade capture.
The rescue of Bat 21 Bravo, the call sign for Iceal "Gene" Hambleton (a navigator aboard an EB-66C aircraft shot down behind North Vietnamese lines), was the "largest, longest, and most complex search-and-rescue" operation during the Vietnam War. Five additional aircraft were shot down during rescue attempts, directly resulting in the deaths of 11 airmen, the capture of two others, and another airman trying to evade capture.
Source: Wikipedia "Rescue of Bat 21 Bravo" · CC BY-SA 4.0
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