George McKnight

McKnight was born in Berkeley, California and raised in Alaska by his grandparents until he enrolled in St. Martin's High School in Washington State. He graduated from the University of Oregon. He was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force through the Air Force ROTC program on July 15, 1955, and went on active duty beginning January 23, 1956. Lieutenant McKnight completed pilot training and was awarded his pilot wings at Laredo AFB, Texas, in February 1957, and then completed F-100 Super Sabre Combat Crew Training in September 1957. His first assignment was as an F-100 pilot with the 35th Fighter-Bomber Squadron at Itazuke AB, Japan, from October 1957 to June 1961, followed by service as an F-100 pilot with the 428th and then the 430th Tactical Fighter Squadron at Cannon AFB, New Mexico, from July 1961 to January 1965. During this time, he deployed to Southeast Asia and flew combat missions from Takhli Royal Thai AFB, Thailand, from November to December 1964. Captain McKnight next completed A-1 Skyraider training at Eglin AFB, Florida, and then served as an A-1 pilot with the 602nd Fighter Squadron at Bien Hoa AB, South Vietnam, from July 1965 until he was forced to bail out over North Vietnam and was taken as a Prisoner of War on November 6, 1965. During his seven and a half years of captivity McKnight was incarcerated first in the Hanoi Hilton and was noted for his continued resistance to his captors and their methods of torture. The then Captain McKnight escaped from his solitary confinement cell on October 12, 1967 by removing the door bolt brackets, knowing the escape attempt could result in severe reprisal or the loss of his life. He was joined by a fellow POW, Navy Lieutenant George Coker, as they made it through a section of housing, then on to the Red River where they swam toward the Gulf of Tonkin throughout the night. The next morning, they were recaptured, severely beaten, and put into solitary confinement for two- and one-half years where repeated beatings continued. They were later transferred to a prison in Hanoi across the Red River called Alcatraz by the POW's where the 11 senior officers (among them Admiral Jim Stockdale, Admiral Jeremiah Denton and junior officers such as McKnight and Coker) were kept in solitary confinement. All were subjected to isolation and continued torture during the remaining years of captivity. Both officers after release were awarded the Air Force Cross (McKnight) and the Navy Cross (Coker) for their heroic efforts. Part of McKnight's Air Force citation reads: "Through his extraordinary heroism and aggressiveness in the face of the enemy, Colonel McKnight reflected the highest credit upon himself and the United States Air Force." His awards include the Air Force Cross, the Silver Star with three devices, the Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star with Combat V, two Purple Hearts and additional unit, service and campaign medals. After spending 2,656 days in captivity, he was released during Operation Homecoming on February 12, 1973. He was briefly hospitalized to recover from his injuries at Travis AFB, California, and then attended the Air War College at Maxwell AFB, Alabama, from August 1973 to July 1974. His next assignment was to flight retraining and F-4 Phantom II Combat Crew Training before serving as Special Assistant to the Deputy Chief of Operations for the 463rd Tactical Fighter Squadron at RAF Lakenheath, England, from March 1975 to April 1976. Col McKnight then served as Deputy Commander for Operations of the 32nd Tactical Fighter Squadron at Camp New Amsterdam in the Netherlands from May 1976 to March 1978, followed by studies at the Defense Language Institute and then service as Defense Air Attache to the Democratic Republic of the Congo from October 1978 to May 1982. His final assignment was as Commander in Chief of the U.S. Air Force/Canadian Forces Officer Exchange Program in Ottawa City, Canada, from November 1982 until his retirement from the Air Force on March 1, 1986. George McKnight died on January 18, 2019 at the Fleet Landing Continuing Care Center in Atlantic Beach, Florida. He was 85.