Stanley Purcell Richardson Jr., U.S.A.F. (ret.) died quietly at his Beaverton home, having decided it was time and surrounded by loving family and friends.

Born March 20, 1923, in Trenton, N.J., he was one of the youngest fighter pilots in the European Theater of WWII, where he flew P-38s and P-51s and then F-86s in Korea. Richardson was a pilot’s pilot who logged more than 30,000 flying hours in two dozen different aircraft types, including airliners and corporate aircraft, before retiring as chief pilot for General Telephone. He had several friends in the astronaut corps and was himself accepted into the space program but his then-commanding officer wouldn’t release him for training.

He was a lifelong motorcyclist who rode well into his ’70s, often making cross-country trips to see space shuttle launches with his beloved second wife, June, who died in 2008. Richardson lived a uniquely American life and stayed in touch with his old comrades and a wide network of new friends and admirers, many of whom rightly regarded him as a hero, though he was an unassuming man who downplayed his considerable accomplishments. He was active in veteran’s groups and was a longtime supporter and docent at the Evergreen Air Museum and Richardson was inducted into the Oregon Aviation Hall of Fame in 2012.

He was preceded in death by his wife, Carol; and second wife, June.

He is survived by his children, Steve Richardson of Everett, Wash., Scott Richardson of Kailua, Hawaii, Shawne Garliepp of Kailua and Shavonn Rinne of Beaverton; companion, Dorothy Zimmerman; grandchildren, Melissa Bowers, Jessica Dickson, Jacob Richardson, Christopher Richardson and Amber King; great-grandchildren, Seven and Atlas Dickson and Decklyn King; and friends and admirers around the country.

There will be a service at 10 a.m. Friday, June 6, 2014, at the chapel on the Portland Air National Guard Station, 6801 N. Cornfoot Road, 70 years to the day that Stan flew his P-38, “Miss Mona,” over the invasion beaches at Normandy.

Facts Born: March 20, 1923
Death: May 27, 2014