Richard A. Knutson was raised in Hallock, Minn., and graduated from Hallock High School in 1967. After two years of college at Morehead State and the University of Minnesota at Crookston, he enlisted in the United States Army.

He was trained as a helicopter pilot at Fort Rucker, Ala., and graduated as a Warrant Officer (WO). On December 3, 1973, he was deployed to Vietnam. WO Knutson was a member of the 62nd Aviation Company (Corps).

On January 8, 1973, Richard was the pilot of a UH-IH helicopter in support of the American Senior Advisor to the Vietnam Airborne Division in Quang Tri Province. Ground troops working in the vicinity of Quang Tri reported seeing his helicopter downed by enemy ground fire and that the aircraft did not burn.

Richard and his crew were reported missing in action. Although he was declared killed in action in 1979, his remains were not recovered until 1995. General John Vessey, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, ordered the investigation of WO Knutson’s crash site.

CWO3 Richard Knutson was finally laid to rest in his home town of Hallock, Minn., in December 1995. His sister Carol DeMann, her husband, Michael DeMann, and nephew, James DeMann, reside in Eden Prairie.

CW03 Knutson’s medals and awards include Helicopter Pilot’s Wings, the Purple Heart, the National Defense Medal, the US Vietnam Service Medal, the Army Commendation Medal, the Vietnam Campaign Medal, the RVN Gallantry Cross Unit Citation and the Expert Rifleman.