A historic Air Force plane that carried out prisoners of war in 1973 brought remains from the Korean and Vietnam wars to the identification lab at Hickam Air Force Base.*The C-141 Starlifter, or "Hanoi Taxi," was piloted by Maj. Gen. Ed Mechenbier, 61, the last Vietnam prisoner of war still flying with the Air Force. Jeff Widener • The Honolulu Advertiser

Mechenbier, 61, the last Vietnam POW still flying in the Air Force, was shot down in an F-4C Phantom fighter in June 1967 on his 80th mission, and spent nearly six years in captivity before taking his first ride in the Hanoi Taxi.

Draped with U.S. flags, 21 metal caskets were taken off the plane two by two, marched past joint color and honor guards, and loaded onto twin blue buses for the short trip to the Joint POW/ MIA Accounting Command Facility at Hickam.

"I'm very honored to be part of this great ceremony today where we recognize that Americans missing in action during the Korean and Vietnam wars have finally arrived back on American soil," said Mechenbier, who is from Ohio.

"The focus of today's ceremony is really about the brave Americans we honor. We should be proud of our great nation to make these efforts to bring home our fallen heroes 30 years after the Vietnam experience and 50 years after the Korean experience."

Mechenbier, who is retiring, recognized O'ahu resident Nick Nishimoto, a Korean War veteran, and Jim Hickerson, an A-7 Corsair pilot who was shot down off Haiphong Harbor in 1967, held as a POW, and freed in 1973.

"I'm so lucky I came back in great shape," said Hickerson, who flew through Hawai'i in 1973 in a plane similar to the Hanoi Taxi. "I had a great Navy career. But the most fortunate thing is I met my wife, Carole, whose first husband was a Marine helicopter pilot shot down in Laos and didn't make it."

On Feb. 12, 1973, the first American POWs left Vietnam as part of "Operation Homecoming." Over six weeks, more than 600 POWs were flown to Hickam on their journey home.

Hickerson recalled landing at Hickam at about midnight on St. Patrick's Day.

"There were a lot of people out here to meet the aircraft," he said.

The Honolulu man yesterday signed a metal panel inside the light-blue interior of the aircraft that had been autographed by dozens of POWs on their way home to freedom.

"Bill Butler, Hanoi Hilton, 20 Nov 1967, 14 March 1973," read one.

Mechenbier, mobilization assistant to the commander of Air Force Materiel Command at Wright-

Patterson Air Force Base, said flying the old Starlifter, repainted in the scheme of the 1970s, was an honor he couldn't refuse.

"When the mission was laid on, and they said that the Hanoi Taxi had a chance to go back to Hanoi, I kind of begged and said, 'Can I go along?' " Mechenbier said. "A two-star general can kind of get his way once in a while, so it was just a personal honor for me to take part in that mission."

The stops in Hanoi and at Hickam were Mechenbier's first since 1973.

Flying the military aircraft into Hanoi, Mechenbier said he denied himself any emotion. "I was busy flying the airplane," he said.

Seeing familiar landmarks from the air such as the site of former prison camps brought back some memories, but Mechenbier said taking part in the repatriation had the greatest effect for him.

"Just flying the airplane is an honor. To go to Hanoi was a double honor," he said. "And then being part of this continuing ceremonial repatriation is over the top."

James Ward, a 74-year-old Makiki veteran who was with the 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines, in the Korean War, said he appreciated Mechenbier's gesture.

"It thrills me to see a POW or veteran that's been in that situation still wanting to give his all or best in honor of those who gave their all," Ward said.

"You hear all this junk in the news about who got a medal or who didn't get a medal," he said. "Things like this, when a person is dedicated to doing something ... it goes a long way with me."

Teams from POW/MIA accounting command recovered the 21 sets of remains during the 77th joint field activity in Vietnam and the 32nd joint recovery operation in North Korea.

From Vietnam, two sets of remains were recovered from sites believed to include the 1968 losses of an Army UH-1D Huey helicopter in Quang Tri province and an Air Force O-2A Skymaster in Quang Binh province.

From North Korea, 12 sets of remains were recovered from the east side of the Chosin Reservoir, the site of bitter fighting by the U.S. Army's 7th Infantry Division during November and December 1950. An additional seven sets of remains were recovered from Unsan County, where the 8th Cavalry Regiment of the 1st Cavalry Division fought in November 1950.

The Hanoi Taxi, which was used to transport troops to Kuwait last year, is scheduled for retirement sometime this year.