Kretzchmar a lace-making machine for eight years in his native East Germany before immigrating to the United States in the late 1950s. He was drafted into the Army in February 1960 and spent a year in Korea between two tours of duty in Vietnam. Kretzchmar took hell-copter flight training in 1967 and returned to Vietnam as a helicopter pilot in November 1967. The 31-year-old warrant officer died on New Year's Day 1968. He was survived by his wife and S-.year.old son.