SSG Ryan C. Knauss

26 August 2021, Afghanistan

Psychological Operations

A native of Corryton, Tennessee, Staff Sergeant Ryan C. Knauss died on 26 August 2021 in Kabul, Afghanistan, while conducting noncombatant evacuation operations during Operation FREEDOM’S SENTINEL.

Knauss enlisted in the Army as an Infantryman in 2016. Following One Station Unit Training and Airborne School at Fort Benning, Georgia, he served as a gunner in the 501st Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg, North Carolina. After a deployment to Afghanistan, he reclassified as a Psychological Operations Specialist. Upon graduation in 2020, he reported to the 9th Psychological Operations Battalion, 8th Psychological Operations Group, at Fort Bragg.

SSG Knauss was serving in the 9th Psychological Operations Battalion when he was killed in a terrorist bombing at the Kabul international airport.