Jon A. Reynolds

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Jon A. Reynolds
Raytheon Company

Brigadier General Jon Anzuena Reynolds (December 13, 1937 – April 16, 2022) was a United States Air Force (USAF) officer who served in the Vietnam War. He was a prisoner of war in North Vietnam from November 1965 to February 1973. Following his release from captivity he continued his USAF career, finally serving as assistant deputy director for attachés.

Early life and education

Reynolds was born in Philadelphia on December 13, 1937. His father worked as an insurance broker; his mother was employed as a nurse.[1] He attended Lower Merion High School, Ardmore, Pennsylvania, graduating in 1955. He received a bachelor's degree in engineering from Trinity College in 1959.[2][3]

Military career

Reynolds was commissioned as a

429th Tactical Fighter Squadron at Cannon Air Force Base, New Mexico, as an F-100 pilot.[2]

In March 1963, Reynolds was assigned as an air liaison officer and

335th Tactical Fighter Squadrons at Seymour Johnson, he participated in squadron deployments to Incirlik Air Base, Turkey; Yokota Air Base, Japan; Osan Air Base, South Korea; and Takhli Royal Thai Air Force Base, Thailand.[2]

While flying a mission near

prisoner of war. On July 6, 1966, he was one of the prisoners forced to participate in the Hanoi March. He was among the first group of American prisoners released during Operation Homecoming on February 12, 1973.[2]

Following his return from captivity, Reynolds undertook graduate study through the

Air War College in 1978. He then was assigned as a politico-military affairs officer in the Western Hemisphere Division, Directorate of Plans, Headquarters U.S. Air Force, Washington D.C. In July 1980, he became a National War College faculty member. He received his doctorate in military history from Duke University in 1980. In June 1981 he returned to Air Force headquarters as chief of the Western Hemisphere Division, Directorate of Plans. During this tour, he served as a delegate to the Inter-American Defense Board and was a member of the Canada-United States Permanent Joint Board on Defense and the Canada-United States Military Cooperation Committee.[2]

From March 1982 to March 1984, Reynolds attended Defense Intelligence School and studied

Secretary of the Air Force in February 1988. In August 1989, he became assistant deputy director for attachés, Defense Intelligence Agency, Washington, D.C., responsible for directing 96 U.S. defense attaché offices worldwide.[2]

Reynolds retired from the USAF on September 1, 1990.[2]

Personal life

Reynolds married Emilee McCarthy in 1974. They had been engaged and were scheduled to marry several weeks before his capture in 1965. Together, they had two children: Elizabeth and Andrew.[1]

Following his retirement, Reynolds joined

Raytheon Company as vice president for international technology programs, first working on the destruction of American chemical weapons at the Johnston Atoll Chemical Agent Disposal System and then as head of sales in China from 1994 to 2000.[3] He initially resided in Greenville, Delaware, before relocating to Bethesda, Maryland, in his later years. He died there of lung cancer on April 16, 2022, aged 84.[1]

Decorations

Reynolds' military decorations and awards include the

Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal and Santos-Dumont Merit Medal.[1][2]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Schudel, Matt (May 3, 2022). "Jon Reynolds, Vietnam POW for more than seven years, dies at 84". The Washington Post. Retrieved May 4, 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h "Brigadier General Jon A. Reynolds". February 1990. Retrieved October 12, 2020.Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  3. ^ a b Berger-Sweeney, Joanne; Khoury, Philip S. (May 17, 2015). "Jon A. Reynolds '59" (PDF). Trinity College. Retrieved October 12, 2020.
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