Richard Albert Scott

Richard Albert Scott enlisted in the United States Army Air Corps at the age of 18 in 1942. After World War II, he served an additional 17 years in the United States Air Force Reserve, achieving the rank of Major.

Initially deemed too underweight to pass the physical, the doctors told him to drink lots of water and report back at noon to be weighed. Once inducted into the Air Corps, Mr. Scott discovered he was too short to be trained as a Pilot, and instead pursued training as a Bombardier and Navigator. Less than a month after marrying his high school sweetheart, June Burge, Mr. Scott received orders to deploy to Italy.

Mr. Scott survived 16 bombing missions as part of the 15th Air Force, including one perilous mission during which his B-24 Liberator was shot down over enemy territory in the Austrian Alps. A safe landing was impossible because the plane’s bomb bay doors were unable to close due to extensive damage. With no other options, and at an altitude of 20,000 feet, without a parachute and with nothing between him and the ground, with the exception of a 9-inch-wide catwalk, Mr. Scott crawled on his stomach across the catwalk to reach the manual crank and close the bomb bay doors. This maneuver effectively slowed his plane’s descent and allowed his crew to guide the plane to an emergency landing on a small British-controlled runway in Northern Italy. Mr. Scott’s act of heroism earned him the Distinguished Flying Cross.

A true American hero, Mr. Scott earned numerous awards and recognitions including: Air Medal, Presidential Unit Citation, European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal, WWII Victory Medal, Air Force Longevity Service Award and the Armed Forces Reserves Medal.

Mr. Scott worked for 45 years at Marine Midland Bank before starting his own business, Foreign Currency Mart. After 28 years of working in foreign currency exchange, he retired at age 90.

Along with his wife of 74½ years, June, he raised a loving family of four children, 10 grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren. At 97 years young, Mr. Scott still resides in Johnson City, where he was born and raised.