POWs Heading Home

CBS News' Richard Roth Reports On The POWs' Return

(CBS)  Three are still recovering from gunshot wounds, but all seven former POWs were radiating smiles, reports CBS News Correspondent Richard Roth.

Delivering thanks for Americans' support, former prisoner Chief Warrant Officer David Williams gave a nod to GI's whose war isn't over yet.

"I'd just like to remind everyone to say a special prayer for all those who are still fighting on the American fence," he said.

Williams was one of two army pilots captured when their helicopter went down March twenty-fourth.

The five other soldiers were ambushed the day before when their maintenance convoy apparently took a wrong turn. Nine others from their unit were killed.

They'll be back in Texas Saturday, thanks to the rescue mission that swept them to safety -- and military doctors who say they're in good shape.

With less worry about the former prisoners' health now, there is still concern about what happened -- and, what the military can learn from it.

Since their arrival in Germany Wednesday night, the soldiers' well-being has stayed the army's priority. But debriefing former prisoners may help avoid some future ones.

"I wouldn't say that they're here to explain what went wrong, said Landstuhl Medical Center's Col. David Rubenstin. "They are sitting down and talking about the entire process in order to ensure that we can learn lessons."

The army says it's also been giving these soldiers some advice: on coping with celebrity.