WATCH: Rare Footage of John McCain's 1973 Release After 5 Years as a Prisoner of War (POW)

◼ In honor of National POW/MIA Recognition Day, we celebrate veterans like Sen. John McCain. - Heritage

In March 1973, a limping Air Force pilot stepped off a bus in Hanoi, North Vietnam, after being shot down, beaten, tortured and held more than five years as a prisoner of war. In 2008, amid the heat of Sen. John McCain’s campaign for president, a former reporter for the Swedish broadcasting network SVT came across previously unseen footage of his initial release before the flight home. In honor of POW/MIA Recognition Day in the United States, watch this AP video depicting McCain and other newly freed POWs.