1922-2010
by Noel Allard
Kenneth O. Wofford (USAF Colonel Retired) – Tuskegee Airman, Minnesota Aeronautics Commissioner, and Minnesota Aviation Hall of Fame inductee – passed away at his home in Golden Valley, Minnesota on September 5, 2010 at age 87. He was placed to rest at Fort Snelling National Cemetery with full military honors.
Wofford was born in Oklahoma in 1922, and enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1943 as a medical technician. In November 1943, Wofford was sent to the Tuskegee Institute for pilot training, where he earned his wings in 1945 and spent 32 years in the U.S. Air Force. During his career, Wofford flew single and multi-engine aircraft and served with the Tactical Air Command, Air Defense Command, Military Airlift Command, USAF Europe, Pacific Air Command and the Air University, amassing 9000 hours of flight time.
As a member of the Tuskegee Airmen, Wofford was assigned to the 477th Composite Squadron flying P-47s and B-25s. He was scheduled overseas when WWII ended. When he retired from the Air Force in 1974, he was named director of the Minnesota DOT Office of Aeronautics where he served for 10 years.
In 1988, Wofford became a founding member of the Minnesota Aviation Hall of Fame, and was inducted into the Hall of Fame himself in 1999.
