Hundreds of admirers pay their respects in Westminster to ‘Vietnamese James Bond’ Ly Tong at public viewing
All day long Saturday, April 20, hundreds of people filed through Westminster Memorial Park to pay their respects to Vietnamese-American folk hero Ly Tong.
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Tong, known as the “Vietnamese James Bond” for his daring exploits to rid the world of communism, died April 5 at age 74 of lung disease.
Tong lived in San Diego, but will be buried at the cemetery bordering Little Saigon – where he is revered by many.
His tribute began with a public viewing Saturday, from morning until night, at Westminster Memorial Park’s Peek Funeral Home. A funeral procession will travel through Little Saigon on Sunday, April 21, starting at around 9 a.m.
Tong’s death-defying feats began when he served in the South Vietnamese Air Force. After North Vietnamese forces shot down his fighter jet, he was imprisoned in a “re-education” camp. Escaping five years later, he walked, biked and swam to Singapore – where he requested asylum at the U.S. Embassy.
Ultimately, he became a U.S. citizen and a daredevil.
In 1992, Tong boarded a flight from Thailand to Vietnam. As the plane approached Ho Chi Minh City, he forced his way into the cockpit falsely claiming he had a bomb. Then he ordered the captain to fly low, and released 50,000 anti-communist fliers through the cockpit window – before grandly exiting via parachute. Landing in a swamp, he was quickly arrested and served six years in prison.
Undeterred, Tong rented a Cessna in 2000 and flew to Cuba to distribute newspapers urging revolt against Fidel Castro. Just a few months later, he paid a private pilot in Thailand to fly him to Vietnam so, once again, he could scatter fliers. For that stunt, he served time in a Bangkok prison.
Tong will be interred at Westminster Memorial Park after the procession, at around noon Sunday. Thousands of admirers are expected to attend.