Heroes Among Us: Navy Pilot Flew Hundreds Of Missions During Cold War, Vietnam War
SUNRISE (CBSMiami) – Now to a weekly segment you will only see right here on CBS4.
Every Friday, in partnership with the Florida Panthers, we put the spotlight on a hero among us.
Men or women who have gone beyond the call of duty for our country.
This week we're meeting U.S. Navy Vietnam War Veteran Lt. Julian Harper.
Lt. Harper who goes by "Jules" served in the United States Navy from 1964 to 1968.
He says he joined to be a naval aviator because he always wanted to be a pilot.
He was a nuclear delivery pilot during the Cold War with Russia and was sent to the Mediterranean for four months with the assignment of dropping a nuclear bomb should it be needed.
From there, he was deployed to Vietnam where he flew 200 missions.
"You really didn't feel scared," he said. "One time I was hit by a large bullet that went through the wing and knocked off 5 feet of my wing. Not knowing if the plane was going to fly was the most scary. I was also turned upside down one time by a missile that blew up behind me. It's a job and with all the bullets and misses coming by, you just get used to it. My most honorable thing was that I was helping to defend our country in the way that I was assigned to me at the time."
Lt. Harper was recognized at a recent Florida Panthers game.
With a big ol' smile on his face, he stood up and thanked the fan-filled arena for this well-deserved recognition as they honored this hero among us.
On behalf of the Florida Panthers and CBS4, we would like to say thank you, U.S. Navy Vietnam War Veteran Lt. Jules Harper, for your service and dedication to our country.
