Pisidhi Indradat
Encyclopedia
Pisidhi Indradat is a Thai
civilian who worked as a "kicker" with Air America during the Vietnam War
. His job was to kick the pallets of food and supplies down the plane to aid the refugees of the war.
On September 5, 1963, Indradat took off on a mission to the Savannakhet Province in Laos
, with fellow Thai Prasit Promsuwan and Prasit Thanee, Chinese
Y.C. To, and Americans
Eugene DeBruin
, Joseph C. Cheney and Charles Herrick. During the flight, the C-46 aircraft was hit by ground fire and crashed about 2 kilometers from Tchepone on the Savannakhet Province. DeBruin, Y.C. To and the three Thai nationals parachuted to safety, but were immediately captured by the Pathet Lao
. Cheney and Herrick were killed in the crash.
After his capture, Indradat and the other prisoners were moved from camp to camp. In May 1964, they managed to escape for three days, but were caught at a watering hole. By February 1966 US Air Force pilot 1st Lieutenant Duane W. Martin
and Navy
pilot Lieutenant Dieter Dengler
joined the POWs in the prison.
On June 29, 1966, while the guards were eating, the group slipped out of their hand and foot restraints and grabbed the guard's unattended submachine guns. The Pathet Lao guards spotted some of the other prisoners trying to escape. A shootout between the two sides ensued and Indarat ended up in a shootout with four guards and shot one to aid in the escape. Two others ran off, presumably to get help. The seven prisoners split into three groups. Indradat, and the other Thai prisoners; DeBruin stayed with To, who had been too ill to continue with the escape; and Dengler and Martin headed for the Mekong River to escape to Thailand. Martin was eventually killed, while Dengler was rescued after 23 days in the jungle. The rest of the prisoners are still unaccounted for.
On the second day after the escape, Indarat separated from the two other Thai. After 32 days in the jungle, Indradat lapsed into unconsciousness and was captured again. He was taken to a prison camp with a large number of Royal Lao POWs, but no Americans or Thais. In early January 1967, information about this prison complex was received by CIA personnel responsible for operations in Laos
. They devised a rescue plan which was successfully implemented on January 7, 1967. They rescued 53 prisoners - 52 Lao and 1 Thai.
Indradat currently resides in Bangkok, Thailand.
's 2007 film Rescue Dawn
about Dieter Dengler's imprisonment and escape.
Thai people
The Thai people, or Siamese, are the main ethnic group of Thailand and are part of the larger Tai ethnolinguistic peoples found in Thailand and adjacent countries in Southeast Asia as well as southern China. Their language is the Thai language, which is classified as part of the Kradai family of...
civilian who worked as a "kicker" with Air America during the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
. His job was to kick the pallets of food and supplies down the plane to aid the refugees of the war.
On September 5, 1963, Indradat took off on a mission to the Savannakhet Province in Laos
Laos
Laos Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west...
, with fellow Thai Prasit Promsuwan and Prasit Thanee, Chinese
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
Y.C. To, and Americans
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Eugene DeBruin
Eugene DeBruin
Eugene Henry DeBruin was a US Air Force staff sergeant, and a member of Air America serving in Laos during the Second Indochina War. "Gene" DeBruin was working as a "kicker" for Air America in 1963 when his C-46 was shot down. He was a POW at a Pathet Lao prison camp in Laos until he and other...
, Joseph C. Cheney and Charles Herrick. During the flight, the C-46 aircraft was hit by ground fire and crashed about 2 kilometers from Tchepone on the Savannakhet Province. DeBruin, Y.C. To and the three Thai nationals parachuted to safety, but were immediately captured by the Pathet Lao
Pathet Lao
The Pathet Lao was a communist political movement and organization in Laos, formed in the mid-20th century. The group was ultimately successful in assuming political power after the Laotian Civil War. The Pathet Lao were always closely associated with Vietnamese communists...
. Cheney and Herrick were killed in the crash.
After his capture, Indradat and the other prisoners were moved from camp to camp. In May 1964, they managed to escape for three days, but were caught at a watering hole. By February 1966 US Air Force pilot 1st Lieutenant Duane W. Martin
Duane W. Martin
Duane Whitney Martin was an American Air Force officer and prisoner of war during the Vietnam War.Martin was assigned to Detachment 1 38th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron , based at Nakhon Phanom Royal Thai Air Force Base, Thailand. On September 20, 1965, Captain Thomas J. Curtis, Martin,...
and Navy
Navy
A navy is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake- or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions...
pilot Lieutenant Dieter Dengler
Dieter Dengler
Dieter Dengler was a United States Navy Naval aviator during the Vietnam War. He was one of the two survivors , out of seven, to escape from a Pathet Lao prison camp in Laos. He was rescued after 23 days on the run, and was the first captured U.S...
joined the POWs in the prison.
On June 29, 1966, while the guards were eating, the group slipped out of their hand and foot restraints and grabbed the guard's unattended submachine guns. The Pathet Lao guards spotted some of the other prisoners trying to escape. A shootout between the two sides ensued and Indarat ended up in a shootout with four guards and shot one to aid in the escape. Two others ran off, presumably to get help. The seven prisoners split into three groups. Indradat, and the other Thai prisoners; DeBruin stayed with To, who had been too ill to continue with the escape; and Dengler and Martin headed for the Mekong River to escape to Thailand. Martin was eventually killed, while Dengler was rescued after 23 days in the jungle. The rest of the prisoners are still unaccounted for.
On the second day after the escape, Indarat separated from the two other Thai. After 32 days in the jungle, Indradat lapsed into unconsciousness and was captured again. He was taken to a prison camp with a large number of Royal Lao POWs, but no Americans or Thais. In early January 1967, information about this prison complex was received by CIA personnel responsible for operations in Laos
Laos
Laos Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west...
. They devised a rescue plan which was successfully implemented on January 7, 1967. They rescued 53 prisoners - 52 Lao and 1 Thai.
Indradat currently resides in Bangkok, Thailand.
Pisidhi Indradat in Film
Pisidhi Indradat was portrayed by Abhijati Jusakul in Werner HerzogWerner Herzog
Werner Herzog Stipetić , known as Werner Herzog, is a German film director, producer, screenwriter, actor, and opera director.He is often considered as one of the greatest figures of the New German Cinema, along with Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Margarethe von Trotta, Volker Schlöndorff, Werner...
's 2007 film Rescue Dawn
Rescue Dawn
Rescue Dawn is a 2007 war drama film directed by Werner Herzog, based on an adapted screenplay written from his acclaimed 1997 documentary, Little Dieter Needs to Fly...
about Dieter Dengler's imprisonment and escape.