Phillip Neal "Phil" Butler (born August 11, 1938) is a retired United States Naval officer and pilot.

Butler, who was forced to eject after a mid-air explosion on April 20, 1965,[1]: 44  was a prisoner of war in North Vietnam until his release as part of Operation Homecoming in 1973.

[2] After his release, Butler earned a PhD in sociology and used his communication skills to provide leadership training in military and civilian life.

His mission was to fly from the Gulf of Tonkin to Highway 1, the major transportation route that the North Vietnamese used to carry military supplies to their troops in the south.

Butler earned a Ph.D. in Sociology at UC San Diego and worked as a Navy Organizational Effectiveness consultant and a professor of management at the U.S.

Butler had a consulting and management company,[21][22] Camelot Enterprises 1981–2000,[8][23][24] specializing in executive team building, interpersonal skills, planning, personal coaching and mentoring.

He became a motivational speaker, speaking to several hundred large audiences about his POW experiences, relating the same fundamentals of survival and success with their lives.

Among many political statements, Butler opposed the candidacy of fellow former POW John McCain in the 2008 US presidential campaign, supporting Barack Obama.