Flt Lt William Stanley 鈥淩icky鈥� Richardson
Celebrating the life of a Caribbean Hero
On 28th April 1917, Ricky Richardson was born in a rural Jamaican town called Porus. After the start of World War Two, Ricky became a policeman in the Jamaica Constabulary Force, following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather.
In January 1941, Ricky Richardson saw an advert in a Jamaican newspaper, The Daily Gleaner, asking for volunteers to join the Royal Air Force. Ricky became one of 500 of the Caribbean’s “brightest and best” who served as aircrew during the war.
After sailing to Britain in November 1941, Ricky trained at RAF bases throughout the country. In late 1943, Ricky began a series of operational flights as a navigator on bombing missions across Europe.
In April 1945, Ricky was part of the bombing raid that sunk one of Germany’s leading battleships, the Lutzow. His last mission was the attack on Hitler’s rural retreat at Berchtesgaden. By the end of the war, Ricky had become a Flight Lieutenant.
Ricky got married to Doris in England on 25th June 1949. A year later, he returned to Jamaica and remained commissioned until 1952.
Ricky passed away on 1st March 2015. He is survived by his son Delroy and six grandchildren.
