SAN DIEGO — On May 19th, 1967, the United States war with Vietnam was raging and Col. Roy Knight Jr., a fighter pilot in the Air Force, was getting ready to fly a mission over the Ho Chi Minh trail in Laos. The crew chief that day- the airman responsible for the final check on the pilot, was Sergeant Richard Witvoet.
"I helped him into the cockpit, I strapped him in," said Witvoet. "I moved him into position to go down to the runway and give him the salute. He saluted back. And off he went. That was the last time I saw him."
Knight never returned from the mission. His official status was Missing in Action.
Fifty-two years later, forensic scientists were able to identify the body of Colonel Knight in the jungles of Laos. He was brought home to the United States and buried with full military honors.
After the story of the homecoming was broadcast on CBS National News, Witvoet reached out to the Knight Family. Roy Knight III invited him and his wife out to San Diego to explore the city and take a tour aboard the USS Midway.
"It's like a dream come true," said Witvoet "I can't thank them enough."
Some relationships in life can be unexpected, to say the least. The son of an Air Force hero and the man who spoke with him last have forged a friendship, over 50 years in the making.
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