Operation Babylift: A Celebration of the Human Spirit (April 24, 2022)

To celebrate the 47th anniversary of Operation BabyLift, the Pan Am Museum and Holt International hosted a special event that reunited Vietnamese war orphans evacuated in the final days of South Vietnam with three former Pan Am flight attendants (Karen Ryan, Ingrid Templeton, and Joyce Lee Westdal) that volunteered for the special mission. This video features speeches from two adoptees: Thuy Williams and Carol Mason.

Also, in attendance was Al Topping, Pan Am's Director of South Vietnam & Cambodia. He helped organized the evacuation flights as North Vietnamese troops were closing in, including another evacuation of almost 400 families soon after Operation BabyLift was completed.

“I was most honored and privileged to have been a part of this event. I couldn't believe I was able to meet the Vietnamese babies again after all these years…all grown up as adults,” said Topping. “The work that Pan Am, Holt International, and others did to rescue these kids is the truest example of the good within the human spirit. We changed lives for the better and I will always cherish that.”

The 1990 movie “Last Flight Out” was based on his dramatic and harrowing story with James Earl Jones starring as Topping. Watch this movie:    • Last Flight Out (1990, TV Movie Based on t...  

In addition, Mr. Topping was featured in "Episode 4: Evacuation of Saigon, Wings of Freedom Mission" of The Pan Am Podcast: https://podcast.thepanammuseum.org/18...

The evening served as an important touchstone for the many parents and adoptees whose lives were changed forever by Pan Am’s contribution to the Operation BabyLift.

Operation Babylift was directed by U.S. President Gerald R. Ford in the final days of South Vietnam shortly before the country fell in 1975. Pan American World Airways sent two Boeing 747s jumbo jets, one charted by Holt International, to assist in the evacuation. This event was a unique celebration and reunion of many involved in the Vietnam BabyLift.

Special thanks to adoptee Dan Marquardt for the video footage and Ed Garcia and Ari Mintz for the event photos. Video created by Tom Betti, Pan Am Museum Board Member.

For more information about our partner, Holt International, visit: https://www.holtinternational.org/

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