Born in 1942, Swanson grew up in Denver, Colorado. He met his future wife Sandee there as a teenager. Swanson attended Colorado State University where he was a member of the Army's Reserve Officers' Training Corps. After graduating in 1965 and becoming a commissioned officer in the Army, he continued to correspond with Sandee, who was serving with the Peace Corps in the Philippines. The two were married in 1967 in Honolulu, Hawaii, while Swanson was on leave from his first tour in Vietnam. They settled in Boulder, Colorado, and had two daughters, Brigid and Holly. Swanson later volunteered for a second combat tour in Southeast Asia. Now a captain, he served as an OH-6A "Loach" helicopter pilot. On February 26, 1971, he and his observer, Staff Sgt. Larry Harrison, were on a reconnaissance mission over Cambodia, searching for enemy positions in support of an Army of the Republic of Vietnamtask force. When the task force came under heavy fire, Swanson engaged and destroyed five enemy bunkers despite intense anti-aircraft fire. He then helped destroy two machine gun positions and, although his craft had been severely damaged and was running low on ammunition, volunteered to continue the mission. While heading towards a third machine gun position, the helicopter exploded and crashed to the ground, killing both men inside. Swanson and Harrison were listed as "killed in action – body not recovered." In 1992, a search team located the crash site and found small amounts of human remains. More remains were recovered in 1999 and, in late 2001, were identified as Swanson and Harrison. Swanson's widow, Sandee, and his younger brother, Tom, were married in 1977. Tom Swanson adopted his brother's two daughters. As adults, the daughters learned that Jon Swanson had been recommended for the Medal of Honor shortly after his death. His original nomination had been rejected, and he was instead given the military's second-highest award, the Distinguished Service Cross. In 1998 his daughters began an effort to have the nomination re-assessed. A subsequent investigation concluded that Swanson's Distinguished Service Cross should be upgraded. He was awarded the Medal of Honor on May 1, 2002, 30 years after the mission in Cambodia. During a ceremony at the White House Rose Garden that day, Swanson's widow and daughters accepted the medal on his behalf from President George W. Bush. World War II soldier Ben L. Salomon was also honored at the ceremony. Two days later, on May 3, Swanson and Harrison were buried together at Arlington National Cemetery.
