Stirm’s homecoming was not as sweet as “Burst of Joy” suggests. T he homecoming of Vietnam Prisoner of War Lt. Col. Robert L.

The men flew the F-105D in combat in Vietnam. Kirk was shot down on his 67th mission on Oct. 28, 1967, captured, and spent five-and-a-half years as a prisoner of war at the notorious Hanoi Hilton.

The aircraft was replaced in the Vietnam War by other aircraft, primarily the F-4 Phantom II. The last F-105D unit, the 355th ...