Lt Col Henry Richard (Rip) Darden, Jr, USAF (Ret) was born on July 2, 1933, in LaGrange, GA. He went to the University of Georgia and joined the Air Force because it was the shortest line for ROTC. But what a sunward path that decision led to! He learned to fly in Waco, TX. Rip flew as the Radar Intercept Officer (RIO) in Air Defense Command F89s Scorpions in Presque Isle, ME as his first assignment. Orlando, FL followed where he flew F89s on Combat Air Patrol for the initial Mercury Space Flights. From there he had a brief tour to Schulthorpe RAFB, UK as a navigator in KB50 tanker.
Hamilton AFB, Marin County, CA was next where he flew the F101 Voodoo and consulted on the design of the backseat of the YF12A, the predecessor to the SR71A Blackbird. It was then on to Lockbourne AFB, OH and back in F101s. From the F101 he moved to Navigator on a C130 Hercules stationed at Clark AFB, Philippines with in-country deployments to Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam. From the heat of the Philippines he moved to the cold of North Dakota to be back in the Voodoo. Seymour Johnson AFB, NC and the F4 Phantom II was next where he made a deployment to Ubon AFB, Thailand, flying combat missions over North Vietnam.
From Route Pack 6 over Hanoi it was on to Torrejon AFB, Spain and HQ of the 16th Air Force as Assistant DO. From there it was back to CONUS and MacDill AFB, FL where he retired as Director of Air Space Management for the 56th TFW.
Rumor has it that he flew under the Golden Gate Bridge (twice) and he seemed always to find space for a set of golf clubs on any cross country flight. He proudly made seven holes-in-one in 30 years of playing golf (more than most pros). He was an F101 qualified instructor and has over 7600 hours in the air and 296 combat missions.
Lt Col Darden retired in 1982 with 27 years in the Air Force where he received the Distinguished Flying Cross (1 OLC), Meritorious Service Medal, and Air Medal (12 OLCs). He has been married to Betty Anne Bowers of Moreland, Georgia since 1956 and has four children (1 deceased) and ten grandchildren. His second career is as an income tax preparer and financial advisor. A true Prayer Warrior, he is an Elder Emeritus of Westminster Presbyterian Church of Brandon, FL where has resided since 1976. He continues to cheer for the Georgia Bulldogs and the Atlanta Braves and loves to share tales of Air Force lore.