Military veteran, community leader Dick Wilson dies at 91

Retired Air Force pilot and community leader Dick Wilson has died.

Wilson, 91, who flew 368 missions in Vietnam and the Asian Theater, also served as a test pilot and worked in Area 51 during his military career.

In a 2021 interview with Ricky Mathews on “Coast Vue,” Wilson said he became a pilot because he loved the speed.

“When I started out, I was driving race cars in Indiana,” he said. “Speed was the attraction. It was fun to get scared.

“It gives you some kind of spirit that only speed can give you.”

He also trained to be an astronaut, but an injury sustained during his college football days ended his dream of going into space.

Wilson retired from Keesler Air Force Base as a lieutenant colonel and he, wife Jacky and their family made Biloxi their home.

After leaving the Air Force in 1976, he owned Wilson’s Fish Camp, set several fishing records, served on the Gulf Coast Chamber of Commerce and  was president of the Biloxi Chamber in 1995. He also was a member of the Lions Club.

He never forgot his military service, helping to found the annual Veterans Day Parade and worked to bring the Mississippi Vietnam Veterans Memorial to life in Ocean Springs.

In 2019, he was named the recipient of the Pat Santucci Award for his service to the Coast.

Wilson is survived by his children: son, Stephen Wilson; his daughters, Kimberly (Mark) Lundquist and Kristina (Jim) Adcock; and his twin sons, Michael (Megan) Wilson and Marty Wilson and numerous grandchildren.