More detail on this person: Jack "90" Knotts
was born John William Knotts Jr. on July 7, 1924
in Gary, Ind iana, and passed away peacefully on
April 8, 2016 in Seminole, Florida. In 1942 he
graduated from high school in Crown Point, Indiana
and attended Purdue University that fall. While
at college he qualified to enter the Army's pilot
training program, and earned his pilot wings and
commission as a 2nd. Lt. in the U.S. Army Air
Corps in March of 1944. Jack became an Instructor
Pilot before he received orders to the 434th
Fighter Squadron, 318th Fighter Wing in Santa
Rosa, California. First flying the P-40N and then
upgrading to the P-38L, the unit worked up for the
invasion of Japan scheduled for November, 1945.
The unit was certified combat ready days before
the dropping of the A-bombs, and the end of the
war. Jack was honorably discharged in November,
1945.
Jack returned to Purdue University and spent the
next fifteen years making a living and raising a
family, but always looking to the skies. In 1960
Jack returned to the cockpit flying with the
Florida Air National Guard. Knowing this is what
he really wanted to do he returned to active duty
in 1962 with the U.S. Army, graduating in class
63-1T from Camp Wolters, Texas as a Chief
Warrant Officer and newly minted helicopter pilot.
In April, 1963 Jack received orders to the 24th
Aviation Battalion, A Company flying the CH-34C
"Choctaw" out of the former Luftwaffe fighter base
at Schleissheim, north of Munich, Germany.
In the late spring of 1965 a group of pilots from
the 24th was transferred to Fort Benning as part
of a nucleus forming a new helicopter outfit, the
178th Assault Support Helicopter Company. The
group included Jack, Captain Robert Black, and
Jack's good friends CWO's Harvey Potter and Alvin
Lee. Jack became an instructor pilot and helped
convert pilots to the new CH-47A Chinook. The
"Boxcars" received orders to South East Asia in
December, 1965. After the Chinooks were ferried to
Oakland, CA Jack sailed onboard the U.S.S. Breton
with them, with a small detachment of pilots and
maintenance personnel. Arriving in Vung Tau in
March of 1966, Jack helped ferry the helicopters
to their new base at Phu Loi where the rest of the
company had been setting up camp. At the end of
his tour with the Boxcars, Jack was recruited by
the CIA to fly for Air America and began flying
the UH-1B out of Saigon. In 1970 Jack worked out
of Udorn, Thailand and then ended the war flying
out of Vientiane, Laos supporting the Hmong n the
Shadow War. He was there at the bitter end, flying
Hmong General Vang Pao and his CIA handler Jerry
Daniels out of Long Cheng in May,1975 before it
was overrun by the communist. After the war Jack
moved to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia flying for S.E.A.
and Sabah Air flying off of oil rigs in the
Philippine Sea. He returned to the states in 1986,
and then moved to Acapulco, Mexico in 1987 flying
on a State Department contract. Unfortunately he
was in a serious helicopter accident resulting in
partial paralysis to his legs, and returned to the
Tampa, Florida area for the remainder of his life.
He loved to attend both Air America and Boxcar
reunions, and enjoyed hand rolled cigars, vintage
scotch, and attending horse racing. He was a true
Patriot, father, and friend, and will be sorely
missed.
- Obit from Chris Knotts - Jack's son - Jack
attended ten Boxcar Reunions between 1996 in
Reno and 2008 in Pensacola. After that travel it
was too difficult for him, but he stayed in touch
until he was age 91. When Laotian General
Vang Pao died, we ran a Taps notice for him, which
was written by Jack, who considered him a friend
and a patriot.....just as we feel about Jack. -
Dean Nelson -
This information was last updated 09/05/2016
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Date posted on this site: 03/10/2024
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