He concluded his 32-year career with the Air Force as the director of the museum, where he held that position for eight years in uniform and 12 years as a civil servant, making him the longest serving director in the museum’s 100-year history.
“The National Museum of the U.S. Air Force expresses our deepest condolences on the passing of retired USAF Col. Richard L. Uppstrom,” the museum said in a statement. “As the longest serving museum director, Uppstrom led the museum from 1976 to 1996.”
He oversaw some of the museum’s most significant changes, including the 1988 opening of the Modern Flight Gallery which houses the Korean War and Southeast Asia Galleries, the opening of the IMAX Theater in 1991, and the establishment of the institution’s first website in 1995, the museum noted.
“We are forever grateful for Uppstrom’s leadership and commitment to preserving the history and heritage of the U.S. Air Force and our nation,” the museum added.
Following high school graduation, he entered Pennsylvania State University and earned a degree in aeronautical engineering while participating in the Air Force ROTC program. He joined the Air Force in 1954, earning his wings that year.
He retired with the rank of colonel.
His Air Force career included assignments with Air Defense Command flying fighters on the East coast and Alaska and a tour in Vietnam where he earned the Distinguished Flying Cross and Bronze Star as well as other commendations.
Additional assignments included Bangkok, Thailand, as an advisor to the Thai Air Force and the Pentagon.
“Upon retirement he was able to continue his role as a flight instructor more actively at the Wright-Patterson AFB Aeroclub and later at MacAir into his 80′s when he concluded his flying career with more than 12,000 hours in his logbook,” his obituary says.
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