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Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: Vietnam War, 1961-1975
  • Branch of Service: Air Force
  • Unit of Service: 433rd Tactical Fighter Squadron, 8th Tactical Fighter Wing
  • Location of Service: Edwards Air Force Base and Sacramento, California; Udorn Royal Thai Air Force Base, Thailand; Germany
  • Highest Rank: Major
  • Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/27026

View full service history

"The real cheer went up when the captain came on the intercom and said that we had flown out of Vietnamese air space." (Audio interview, 29:46)

After six months flying missions out of the Ubon Royal Air Force Base in Thailand, and with approximately a hundred and thirty-five missions under his belt, Air Force Major Richard Lyman Bates was shot down over enemy territory on October 5, 1972. Captured by the North Vietnamese, he spent the next six months as a prisoner of war. To keep his mind sharp, he made endless mental lists of the names of states, capital cities, and people he knew. Returning to the States in March 1973, he served in the Air Force for 17 more years, which he credits with letting him follow his passion for flying airplanes.

Richard Lyman Bates Collection
Interview / Recording

Transcript

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About this Item

Title

  • Richard Lyman Bates Collection

Names

  • Library of Congress
  • Veterans History Project
  • Clyburn, Vera
  • Bates, Richard Lyman

Home State

  • Texas

Headings

  • -  Bates, Richard Lyman
  • -  Vietnam War, 1961-1975 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Air Force.
  • -  Prisoner of War -- United States

Repository

  • Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Gender

  • Male

Race

  • White

Status

  • veteran

Service History

  • Vietnam War, 1961-1975

    • Branch of Service: Air Force
    • Unit of Service: 433rd Tactical Fighter Squadron, 8th Tactical Fighter Wing
    • Location of Service: Edwards Air Force Base and Sacramento, California; Udorn Royal Thai Air Force Base, Thailand; Germany
    • Highest Rank: Major
    • Dates of Service: 1970-1990
    • Prisoner of War: Yes
    • Military Status: veteran

Materials

  • Computer File: Floppy Disk [1 item] -- Electronic file of manuscript (collected 2005-06-23; 2005-07-14)
  • Manuscript: Transcript [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected 2005-06-23)
  • Audio: Audio Cassette [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 2005-05-28)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/27026

Cite as

  • Richard Lyman Bates Collection (AFC/2001/001/27026), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • audio
  • online text

Additional Metadata Formats

Rights & Access

Using VHP Material in Publication or Exhibition

The Veterans History Project (VHP) at the Library of Congress collects, preserves and makes accessible the firsthand recollections of U.S. military veterans who served from World War I through more recent conflicts and peacekeeping missions, so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand what they saw, did and felt during their service. The Veterans History Project Collection includes oral histories along with documentary materials such as original letters, diaries, photographs, and memoirs.

Veterans and interviewers contribute these materials to the Library for scholarly and educational purposes, retaining any copyright they may hold. Therefore, permission must be obtained before using the interview or other materials in exhibition or publication. Researchers or others who would like to make further use of these materials should contact the Veterans History Project for assistance.

As a publicly supported institution, the Library generally does not own rights to material in its collections. Therefore, it does not charge permission fees for use of such material and cannot give or deny permission to publish or otherwise distribute material in its collections. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item from the Library’s collections and for securing any necessary permissions rests with persons desiring to use the item.

Please contact us with questions.

Obtaining Copies of VHP Materials

In order for VHP materials to be duplicated, we must receive written permission from the interviewee for you to obtain a copy of the recording unless the proposed use is limited to personal use, research, or other uses permissible by copyright law. If the interviewee is deceased, their next-of-kin may grant written permission.

Please contact VHP for assistance if you need to contact a veteran for permission to use their materials in exhibition or publication, or if you have received permission from the veteran and need access to high-resolution copies of VHP collection materials.

Citing VHP Materials

Please use the following formats when citing Veterans History Project materials (substituting the appropriate name and collection ID number).

Materials as a whole:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Manuscript material:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Memoirs (MS02), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Transcript (MS04), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Correspondence (MS01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Recording:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Audio recording (SR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Video recording (MV01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Photograph:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Photographs (PH01), photographer unknown, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Photographs (PH03-PH14), Ralph Williams photographer, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Computer file:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Computer file (CF01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Artifact:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Artifact (AR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Library Of Congress, Veterans History Project, Vera Clyburn, and Richard Lyman Bates. Richard Lyman Bates Collection. 1970. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.27026/.

APA citation style:

Library Of Congress, Veterans History Project, Clyburn, V. & Bates, R. L. (1970) Richard Lyman Bates Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.27026/.

MLA citation style:

Library Of Congress, et al. Richard Lyman Bates Collection. 1970. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.27026/>.