COLORADO SPRINGS – The United States Air Force Academy is mourning the loss of one of its own.

Retired Lieutenant General Winfield Scott Jr. passed away on Sunday at 94. Scott served as the tenth Superintendent of the Academy from June 1983 to June 1987. The Superintendent is considered the Senior Officer and Commander of the United States Air Force Academy

General Scott was born in 1927 in Honolulu, according to the Air Force. He entered the U.S. Military Academy, West Point, N.Y., in 1946. 

He received his wings upon completing pilot training in August 1951 at Craig Air Force Base, Ala. After advanced fighter pilot training at Luke Air Force Base, Ariz., he was assigned as a tactical reconnaissance pilot at Kimpo Air Base, South Korea. He completed a combat tour of duty in F-51 Mustangs.

From 1969 to 1977, General Scott held various command and staff positions: action officer on the Air Staff, wing commander, division commander, vice commander of an air logistics center, and commander of a technical training center.

In 1985, while Superintendent of the U.S. Air Force Academy, Scott accomplished the Academy’s freefall parachute training. At nearly 60 years old, he was the oldest and highest-ranking person to earn jump wings through that program, said to be the only training program in the world where the student’s very first jump is accomplished as a solo freefall.

The Air Force Academy wrote on Facebook, “We salute this groundbreaking airman and the Scott family for their service and sacrifice.”