Ten years later: looking back at two Georgia POWs

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Ten years later: looking back at two Georgia POWs

POW Chief Warrant Officer, Ronald D. Young Jr.

In this image from video shown on Al-Jazeera television, on Monday, March 24, 2003, Chief Warrant Officer Ronald D. Young Jr., 26, from Georgia, is seen. Young is one of a two-man crew believed to be aboard an Apache helicopter that was allegedly forced down during heaving fighting Sunday night in central Iraq.

In this image from video shown on Al-Jazeera television on Monday, March 24, 2003, Chief Warrant Officer Ronald D. Young, Jr., 26, from Georgia, left, and Chief Warrant Officer David S. Williams, 30, from Florida, are seen. Young and Williams are the two-man crew believed to be aboard an Apache helicopter that was allegedly forced down during heaving fighting Sunday night in central Iraq.

U.S. Army Apache helicopter pilot Chief Warrant Officer Ronald D. Young Jr., 26, right, of Lithia Springs, Ga, who had been held as a POW by Iraqi forces when his helicopter was forced down March 23 during heavy fighting is greeting by an unidentified U.S. serviceman as he is escorted on to a waiting C-130 transport plane, Sunday, April 13, 2003, 60 miles south of Baghdad.

Former POWs Chief Warrant Officer David S. Williams, second left, Sgt. James Riley, third left, Chief Warrant Officer Ronald D. Young Jr., third right, and Pfc. Patrick Miller, second right, are escorted by U.S. Marines to a waiting C-130 transport plane Sunday, April 13, 2003, 60 miles south of Baghdad.

Chief Warrant Officer David Williams and his wife, Michelle, left, and Chief Warrant Officer Ronald Young and his mother, Kaye, are escorted by supporting troops, friends and family members as they walk toward a welcoming ceremony at Fort Hood Saturday night. They were among seven POWs who returned home Saturday.

Former POW Ron Young walks with friends and family from his Delta Air Lines plane to an awaiting van at Hartsfield International Airport before leaving for Lithia Springs home on Tuesday, April 22, 2003.

U.S. Army Chief Warrant Officer Ronald Young, at podium, is cheered by fellow soldiers following a short speech by Young during a ceremony honoring his and CWO David Williams return, Saturday April 19, 2003, in Fort Hood, Texas.

Ex-POW Ronald Young Jr., with his dad Ronald Young Sr., points to the 1st Cavalry Division patch on his suit, drawing cheers from the crowd that welcomed him home. He was reunited with his family at Fort Hood, Texas, Saturday night.

Army Helicopter pilot Ronald Young, Jr (center) (cq) stands in prayer with his mother, Kaye Young, (Left) and father, Ronald Young, Sr., (Right) during a ceremony Friday, May 9th 2003 at the Douglas County High School football field honoring the former POW.

Chief Warrant Officer Ronald D. Young Jr., left, a former POW, listens to President Bush after attending Easter church services at the 4th Infantry Division Memorial Chapel Sunday, April 20, 2003, at Fort Hood, Texas. Bush visited the nation's largest military base Sunday to attend church services and to meet with the two freed POWs and their families who were attending the same service.

Ron Young Jr., a former prisoner of war during Operation Iraqi Freedom, expresses his gratitude to military veterans for their leadership and unwavering service to the country, Sunday, Nov. 9, 2003, in Jackson, Miss., during a Veterans Day program. Young, the keynote speaker at the ceremony, was an Army warrant officer when he and his co-pilot, Chief Warrant Officer David Williams, were shot down and captured southwest of Baghdad, March 23, 2003. The two officers were rescued 22 days later.

Army Helicopter pilot Ronald Young, Jr's n (center) (cq) sits with his father, Ronald Young, Sr. (Right) during a ceremony Friday, May 9th 2003 at the Douglas County High School football field honoring the former POW.

Former POW Ron Young leads the Dacula Memorial Day parade as its grand marshal on Monday, May 26, 2003, in Gwinnett County. People lined the streets to honor Young and other Veterans who served America in the armed forces.

Atlanta Braves vs Texas Ranger at Turner Field. Former POW Warrant Officer Ronald D. Young of Lithia Springs was part of the pre-game festivities. He rode around the field in a Lexus followed by hundreds of Boy Scouts, then received a jersey from Braves pitcher John Smoltz.

In the Salute To America parade down Peachtree Street in Atlanta Lithia Springs resident and former Iraqi POW Ronald Young, the Grand Marshall, waves to the crowd along the route.

Portrait of Pilot Ron Young with the LUH-72 Lakota helicopter he flies at the Clay National Guard Center in Marietta on Weds., March 27th, 2013. The Apache Longbow went down hard and fast. Georgia soldiers Ron Young and Dave Williams felt lucky to be alive following the crash of their attack helicopter, even in hostile Iraqi territory. But fate wasn't through with them: Ten years ago this week, forces loyal to Saddam Hussein captured the soldiers. For three weeks, they and seven other troops were hostages until American forces freed them in mid-April.

Portrait of Pilot Ron Young with the LUH-72 Lakota helicopter he flies at the Clay National Guard Center in Marietta on Weds., March 27th, 2013.

Pilot Ron Young demonstrates some of the preflight procedures he performs on the LUH-72 Lakota helicopter that he flies at the Clay National Guard Center in Marietta on Weds., March 27th, 2013.

Pilot Ron Young demonstrates some of the preflight procedures he performs on the LUH-72 Lakota helicopter that he flies at the Clay National Guard Center in Marietta on Weds., March 27th, 2013.

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POW Chief Warrant Officer, Ronald D. Young Jr.

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