Richard Madson Brown
1922 ~ 2021
Captain Richard ‘Dick’ Brown age 99, took his final flight - home to heaven September 19, 2021. Dick was born in Minneapolis on January 6, 1922. His family moved to Fargo, N.D. when he was of early age. He attended school in Fargo and graduated from Fargo Central High School in 1939.
Two years later, on April 07, 1941, Dick was hired by Northwest Airlines as a Ticket Agent – Field Traffic. Soon thereafter World War II and ‘the inevitable draft’ was looming heavy in Dick’s life. After extensive testing and evaluation, he qualified for Army Air Corps Aviation Cadet pilot program. Dick performed well and earned his silver pilot wings and a commission as a 2nd Lt. His next military assignment involved extensive training in the Douglas B-26 twin engine attack bomber. In early 1944 Dick was shipped overseas to England from which he flew sixty-six combat missions over Europe as a B-26 aircraft commander. One of those missions was flown over France on D-Day in support of the Normandy Landings. He separated from the Army Air Force in June of 1945.
Read more: Richard M. Brown
Frederick H. Weber
1940 ~ 2021
Captain Frederick Howard Weber, age 81, was born April 10, 1940, in New York City. The son of Fritz and Elizabeth Weber, Fred was raised in the Catskill Mountains of Upstate NY. Fred was an only child. His first memory of his father came after the end of WWII when father returned from Navy service in the Pacific.
Fred graduated from Middleburg High School in Upstate NY. After high school he enlisted in the US Air Force and served as an electronics technician in the Atlas F Missile program. When the Atlas F missile was retired from the SAC inventory Fred was retrained as a B-52 Aerial Defensive Gunner. He was assigned to a SAC B-52 squadron at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, Goldsborough NC. During his off-duty time Fred learned how to fly in the Base Aero Club at Seymour Johnson AFB. After obtaining several pilot ratings through the Aero Club, Fred separated from the active Air Force and returned to Upstate NY. His first pilot job was with Richmore Aviation in Hudson, NY flying mostly corporate aircraft. After building flight time and experience with Richmore Aviation, Fred applied for pilot employment with Northwest Airlines. He began his airline career on March 24, 1969.
Read more: Frederick H. Weber
Richard E. Simonson
1935 ~2021
Captain Richard ‘Dick’ Simonson, age 86 of Burnsville, MN, passed away peacefully on June 6, 2021. Dick was born in Menominee, Wisconsin on May 03, 1935 to parents Pearle and Evelyn Simonson.
Dick grew up near Madison, WI and attended Madison East High School. In addition to being a good student, Dick quarterbacked the school football team. After high school he entered the University of Wisconsin where he earned a BA degree and completed the Air Force ROTC program. In addition to the academics and military, Dick played quarterback on the UW football team.
Upon earning an undergraduate degree, Dick was commissioned in the Air Force Reserve. A short time after commissioning he entered active duty assigned to USAF Undergraduate Pilot Training. Earning his silver wings, Dick was assigned to Strategic Air Command (SAC) at Minot AFB, ND. After more extensive training, Dick flew the B-52 often flying airborne alert tours over the Arctic circle.
Read more: Richard E. Simonson
Hugh Thomas Nunn
1934~ 2021 
Captain Tom Nunn, age 86, passed away on June 27, 2021 at St Francis Hospital in Shakopee, MN following a stroke. Tom was born on October 26, 1934 to S. Virgil and Myrtie (Ferguson) Nunn in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Tom started fulfilling his interest in aviation at Harvey Young Airport located southeast of Tulsa. In these years he acquired his FAA ratings and built flying time in a variety of tail dragger trainers and early nose wheel Cessna aircraft.
In 1958 Tom, his wife Janice and their son Thomas moved to Minnesota to begin a 32-year career with Northwest Airlines. Tom officially joined Northwest Airlines 05-23-1958. It is believed he flew the DC-4, DC-6, DC-7, Lockheed Electra, Boeing 720/320, 757, the McDonald Douglas DC-10, and the Boeing 747 Classic. Tom talents found root in the NWA Flight Training Department. He was popular as a ground school and aircraft instructor. In time, as the airline expanded, Tom would become the Director of Flight Training. During his tenure Tom launched many innovative training concepts, including the Line Oriented Flight Training (LOFT) using scenarios built around industry incidents and accidents. Many perceived the NWA LOFT scenarios to be a realistic innovation in ‘real world’ flight training.
Read more: H. Tom Nunn
Lawrence T. Amelse
1939 ~ 2021
Captain Larry Amelse, age 81, was born to Adrian and Marie Amelse in Eau Claire, WI on September 3rd, 1939. Larry was the tenth of thirteen children and was raised in nearby Fall Creek, WI. His childhood routine consisted of helping his parents and siblings on the family dairy farm where he learned the value of hard work – a trait that Larry carried with him throughout his life.
He attended a one room schoolhouse until the eighth grade. From there, Larry spent three years at Society of the Divine Word seminary. He then transferred to Cadott High School where he graduated in 1957. Larry then spent two years at the College of St. Thomas in St. Paul, MN. Larry left college after two years to pursue his dream of becoming a pilot; an interest that began while watching planes occasionally fly overhead as he worked on the family farm.
Larry took his first flight on an aircraft as he flew to Pensacola, FL to enter the Naval Cadet flight training program. Larry was commissioned as a 2nd Lt. in the United States Marine Corps where he began his eight-year career flying the C-130 Hercules and a short time in the F9F Panther. During his time, Larry was stationed at Cherry Point, NC and Keneohe Bay, HI. and served in the Vietnam War and the Cuban Missile crisis. He was also part of a crew that flew (a then record) high altitude parachute drop from his C-130.
Read more: Lawrence T. Amelse
Ross E. Kramer
1939 ~ 2021
Captain Ross Kramer, age 81, born Dec. 31, 1939, and hired by NWA on July 07, 1969.
In the words of NWA Captain Michael J. Garrison.
“A part of me died on September 13,2021 with the Flying West of "The Bear", Ross Kramer. He and I grew up in Seattle, Washington, graduated from Queen Anne High School where we played football together, followed by attending the University of Washington. "The Bear" was a gentle giant of tremendous accomplishments.
Following six years of active duty in the "junior varsity"(USAF), he resigned with a pocket full of medals, including the Silver Star for his service in Vietnam. Ross joined Northwest Airlines, but was soon laid off during the strike prone 1970s. He was the junior most pilot protected in the 1978 pilot contract.
During his eight-year layoff Ross attended William Mitchell Law School. After passing the Bar, he co-founded Messerli Kramer and Associates, which became a prestigious Twin Cities law firm. In an early career case, Ross represented the surviving families of an Air Force Reserve crash near the now decommissioned Sawyer Air Base in Michigan, and successfully sued the U.S. Government.
Read more: Ross E. Kramer