Escape From Laos
by Dieter Dengler
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Book Summary Information
Author: Dieter DenglerEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 1997-01-14
ISBN: 089141293X
Number of pages: 228
Publisher: Presidio Press
Book Reviews of Escape From Laos
Book Review: The Laotian jungle was more deadly than the Pathet Lao
Summary: 5 Stars
The stories of the brave Americans, most of them military pilots, who were captured and tortured in the North Vietnamese prisons are among the most harrowing and compelling sagas in the history of war. The brutality of the guards, the primitive conditions of existence surrounded by concrete and filth, the dysentery, the untreated traumas induced by the pilots' high-speed ejections from their airplanes or from the villagers who found and attacked them before they reached Hanoi. These men deserve all the respect and valor that America can give them.
And, believe it or not, they were the lucky ones. It was the American prisoners who never made it to Hanoi that suffered the cruelest fate. The barbaric cages in the jungles of South Vietnam controlled by Viet Cong were even worse. The jungle diseases tore apart the healthiest of American soldiers and airmen. The POWs held in the jungles were at the utter mercy (or lack thereof) of the captors and their sadistic whims. There was no chain of command, unlike in North Vietnam, where the guards and inquisitors of the POWs sometimes spoke English and knew something of western culture. In the jungle, even the guards were fighting to just stay alive.
Lt. Dieter Dengler was even worse off than those held by the Viet Cong. In the jungle areas of South Vietnam or the Mekong Delta, some Americans managed to escape and find American patrols or outposts. The land or rivers could at least be traveled through. In Laos, if you weren't immediately rescued, you were on your own and as good as dead. Lt. Dengler should have died on impact when his Spad crashed. He actually evaded capture in the dark heart of Laos for 24 hours. Weeks later, he managed to escape and climb a rugged karst mountain only to be forced to retreat because of the brutal conditions and unquenchable thirst. He was recaptured, and eventually ended up in a primitive jungle prison deep in Laos.
There he met some Americans, some of whom had been held captive for up to 3 years. One, Air Force Lt. Duane Martin, had evaded capture in Laos for over two weeks while 3 others from his downed Air Force rescue helicopter were quickly captured and sent to the North Vietnam prisons. Again, those captured 3, unlike Lt. Martin, were the lucky ones. It is a cruel irony that the bravest and strongest of the Americans - those who evaded capture or escaped - were almost invariably killed by the lethal jungles or by the enraged captors who tracked them down. Duane Martin chose to escape with Dieter and his fate is poignantly described by Mr. Dengler. This final escape, with Martin and Dengler fighting the elements and the Pathet Lao to stay alive in the brutal jungle of Laos, is riveting and virtually unique in the recorded history of Americans at war. After 23 days, Dengler was alone and within a day or two of death due to the harsh environment. Then, in what is perhaps the most amazing, miraculous, needle-in-a-haystack rescue in American history, the story climaxes with the blessed appearance of a Jolly Green Giant and a tree-penetrator.
Virtually nobody ever made it out of Laos once in the clutches of the enemy. This inspiring story is a classic of indomitable human will.
Summary of Escape From Laos
Dengler's story is a valuable contribution to the literature of survival as well as to the literature of the war.United States Books
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