James Stockdale
James Bond "Jim" Stockdale (December 23, 1923 – July 5, 2005) was a United States Navy vice admiral and aviator who was awarded the Medal of Honor in the Vietnam War, during which he was a prisoner of war for over seven years.
James Stockdale | |
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Stockdale as a rear admiral in full dress white uniform (late 1970s) | |
| Birth name | James Bond Stockdale |
| Nickname(s) | "Jim" |
| Born | December 23, 1923 Abingdon, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | July 5, 2005 (aged 81) Coronado, California, U.S. |
| Buried | United States Naval Academy Cemetery, Annapolis, Maryland, U.S. |
| Allegiance | United States of America |
| Service/ | United States Navy |
| Years of service | 1946–1979 |
| Rank | Vice admiral |
| Commands held | VF-51 Carrier Air Wing 16 |
| Battles/wars | Vietnam War |
| Awards |
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| Alma mater | Monmouth College (attended) U.S. Naval Academy (BS) Stanford University (MA) |
| Spouse(s) |
Sybil Bailey Stockdale
(m. 1947) |
| Other work | Vice presidential candidate, 1992 |
Stockdale was the most senior naval officer held captive in Hanoi, North Vietnam. He led aerial attacks from the carrier USS Ticonderoga (CVA-14) during the 1964 Gulf of Tonkin incident. On his next deployment, while commander of Carrier Air Wing Sixteen aboard the carrier USS Oriskany (CV-34), his A-4 Skyhawk jet was shot down in North Vietnam on September 9, 1965. He served as president of the Naval War College from October 1977 until he retired from the navy in 1979. As vice admiral, Stockdale was the president of The Citadel from 1979 to 1980.
Stockdale was a candidate for vice president of the United States in the 1992 presidential election, on Ross Perot's independent ticket.