James Knuckles, Crew Chief

71st SOS, Nha Trang, 1968-69

I was born in my hometown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1948. After graduating from Westinghouse High School in 1967, I joined the United States Air Force at Pittsburgh to I served with the 71st Special Operations Squadron as an aircraft mechanic and crew chief during 1968-69 at Nha Trang Air Base, Republic of Vietnam. I was in the first group of fifteen active duty aircraft mechanics to arrive in Vietnam, ninety days before the 71st SOS reserves arrived in-country with the AC-119G gunships. The most exciting events for me in Southeast Asia were arriving in-country Vietnam at Cam Ranh Bay and departing Vietnam at Cam Ranh Bay.

I graduated from Rio Salado College in Mesa, Arizona in 1985 and retired from the Air Force at Williams AFB, Arizona in 1987. Currently, my wife and I live in Mesa.