Photo By Kelly Morris | Maj. Gen. Clair A. Gill, Aviation Center of Excellence and Fort Rucker commanding...... read more read more
FORT RUCKER, Ala.--Fort Rucker honored the personal courage and sacrifices of the nation’s former Prisoners of War and those who are still Missing in Action during a ceremony held on National POW/MIA Recognition Day, September 19.
National POW/MIA Recognition Day was established in 1979 through a proclamation signed by President Jimmy Carter, and each president since then has issued an annual proclamation commemorating the third Friday in September for the observance. By law, on that day the POW/MIA flag is required to be flown at designated federal government locations.
Maj. Gen. Clair A. Gill, Aviation Center of Excellence and Fort Rucker commanding general, welcomed attendees, including retired Sgt. 1st Class Dan Stamaris, a former prisoner of war, and his spouse. He served as a Black Hawk crew chief and was taken as a prisoner of war in Iraq during Operation Desert Storm.
“Dan, your courage and resilience inspire us all. Thanks for your service to our nation,” Gill said.
Gill explained that former prisoners of war play a vital role at Fort Rucker as they contribute their knowledge and experience to the U.S. Army Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape (SERE) school, which Army aviators are required to complete as part of flight school. The former POWs help prepare Soldiers for “the unthinkable,” Gill said.
Gill expressed gratitude to learn of the recent repatriation of an Alabama hero, Pfc. Norman Thomas, who served in the Pacific theater and died as a prisoner of war during World War II.
“Private Thomas endured the horrors of the Bataan Death March in captivity, a testament to the brutality faced by our service members,” Gill said. He noted the ongoing efforts of the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency and its international partners, who work tirelessly to identify our missing in action.
“The black and white POW/MIA flag flying right next to me here serves as a powerful symbol of our nation’s commitment to those who have not returned. It evokes images of courage, resilience and sacrifice form the daring escapes depicted in films like The Great Escape and Black Hawk Down, to the iconic images of Staff Sgt. Gail Kerns kissing American soil upon his return from Vietnam,” Gill said.
“We also remember figures like our own, the late Col. Jerry Sage from right here in Enterprise, Alabama, whose experiences shaped Steve McQueen’s character the ‘Cooler King’ in the movie The Great Escape,” Gill said.
“Today I want to share another special story with you,” Gill said. “The family of Lt. Louis E. Pape, a World War II aviator, recently discovered his old diary and shared it with us. It provides a poignant glimpse into the life of a prisoner of war.”
A farmer from the Midwest, 2nd Lt. Pape flew 40 combat missions in the P-38 until he was shot down in the skies over Italy in September of 1943. His writings chronicle his missions and the grim reality of captivity. Gill quoted from Pape’s documents.
“He writes, ‘This isn’t exactly a diary. You asked me if I were keeping one, Mother. It’s more like a long letter. If you ever get to read it you’ll at least have an idea of what’s going on over here. Of course it generally concerns me but it fits the actions and thoughts of most every pilot’.”
On one occasion, Pape wrote of his adversary,
“The Germans are smart fliers and they have good planes. Their flak is something to stay out of if you wish to keep feeling well.”
In another instance, Pape wrote, “According to the latest German news, we are sure catching hell. If so, I would like to know what they are catching. They are catching it on all fronts—from air, ground and the sea.”
Pape described their movements and successes as missions increased in frequency and intensity. He described a mission in June in detail:
“When our flight made the initial attack on a flight of four enemy fighters, I saw one coming in from the other side. There was nothing left to do but turn into it. We both fired on the first pass, neither hitting. Then he started to climb, which is a mistake when fighting a 38. I started after him and then he did a wing-over and met me coming head-on. That was also a mistake. He exploded just as we passed each other, and there was nothing left of that plane. I didn’t ever get a hole in ‘Jinnie’ [the name he gave his P-38 aircraft].”
In late August, he wrote that everyone was expecting “a big show to come off soon.” That was his last entry in succession: Pape was missing in action. Within ten missions of completing his tour, his plane was shot down in a dog fight and crashed in the Mediterranean Sea. When he came to, he was still in the cockpit in water up to his neck. He wrote about wasting no time getting out of the plane. He was picked up a few hours later by boat by the Germans in the vicinity of the Bay of Naples.
As a prisoner of war in Europe, he made a makeshift diary bound by pieces of tin where he wrote about the conditions in the camp.
“He described the incredible camaraderie among his fellow servicemembers, and the ingenuity required to survive as a prisoner of war,” Gill said.
Pape and another farmer in the camp made most of their essential items and implements by hand using salvaged materials, “demonstrating remarkable resourcefulness and resilience,” Gill added.
Pape wrote that up to 140 men cooked on a single-hole stove with a small oven, and they would maximize their rations as a group. He wrote, “It was surprising to see the things the boys could make. You would say it couldn’t be done.”
“After more than a year in captivity, then came the long forced marches in cold and snow as the Soviets advanced. Thankfully the tide was turning with the Allied Forces gaining the advantage,” Gill said. “Lt. Pape wrote about hearing the increased activity overhead and on the ground with explosions and small arms fire. He said, ‘It was then that a big cheer went up as we could finally see the American Flag going up over Moosburg. We were finally in Allied hands again’.”
Pape fortunately survived and returned home. He resumed his life as a farmer and eventually retired and moved to Texas, not far from the area where he had completed his initial flight training. He passed away in 2010 at 89 years old.
“For years his diary remained tucked away in an old Red Cross Prisoner of War ration box along with a few other items. Pape’s only child, Cheryl Denslow said she believes that her father’s story ‘does not belong in a box, it belongs to the country he fought for’. And we couldn’t agree more,” Gill said. “His family’s decision to share his story ensures that his experience and those of his fellow POWs will never be forgotten.”
Gill noted that Pape’s generation of warfighters saw the largest number of prisoners of war, including Gill’s own grandfather.
To date, more than 80,000 service members across decades of service remain missing in action. The DPAA continues its efforts to bring them home.
For more information on the Nation’s ongoing efforts to bring its Missing in Action home, visit www.dpaa.mil.
| Date Taken: | 09.19.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 09.19.2025 15:07 |
| Story ID: | 548757 |
| Location: | FORT RUCKER, ALABAMA, US |
| Web Views: | 14 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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