Aimo Koivunen

Early life Aimo Allan Koivunen was born in Alastaro, Grand Duchy of Finland, on 17 October 1917 to Frans Vihtori Koivunen and Aune Sofia Koivunen. They had six children, of whom Aimo was the eldest.

Continuation War Koivunen was a Finnish soldier, assigned to a ski patrol on 15 March 1944 along with several other Finnish soldiers. Three days into their mission on 18 March, the group was attacked and surrounded by Soviet forces, from whom they were able to escape. Koivunen became fatigued after skiing for a long distance but could not stop. He was carrying his patrol's entire supply of army-issued Pervitin, or methamphetamine, a stimulant used to remain awake while on duty.

In the following days, Koivunen escaped Soviet forces once again, was injured by a land mine, and stayed in a ditch for a week, waiting for help. He died in 1989 at the age of 71.