Kenneth Taylor; Flew Against Pearl Harbor Raiders

Born Dec. 23, 1919, in Enid, Okla., Kenneth Marlar Taylor was raised in Hominy, Okla., and entered the University of Oklahoma in 1938. After two years, he quit school to enlist in the Army Air Corps.

His first commanding officer, retired Gen. Gordon Austin, chose Lt. Taylor and Welch as his flight commanders shortly after their arrival in Hawaii.

"He was skillful as a pilot and a well-oriented officer," said Austin, now 93 and living in Alexandria. "You couldn't ask for a better flying officer in your squadron. He was willing to do anything, I'm sure. The enemy was all around and he was going after them."

After Pearl Harbor, the young pilot was sent to the South Pacific, flying out of Guadalcanal, and was credited with downing another Japanese aircraft. During an air raid at the base one day, someone jumped into a trench on top of him and broke his leg, which ended his combat career.

He rose to the rank of colonel during his 27 years of active duty. He became commander of the Alaska Air National Guard and retired as a brigadier general in 1971. He then worked as an insurance underwriter in Alaska, representing Lloyds of London, until 1985.

Gen. Taylor split his retirement between Anchorage and Arizona. He was a technical adviser for the 1970 film "Tora! Tora! Tora!" in which his character was played by actor Carl Reindel. In the 2001 movie "Pearl Harbor," actor Ben Affleck played a character based on Gen. Taylor, although he was not consulted and considered the film "a piece of trash . . . over-sensationalized and distorted," according to his son.

"My dad was modest and retiring about all this," his son said. "I have picked up what I know about it in snippets over the years. He was always self-conscious about people making a big deal of it, and he wanted to be remembered as a good husband, a good provider and a good citizen."

Survivors, in addition to his son of Green Valley, Ariz., include his wife of 64 years, Flora Love Morrison Taylor of Tucson; a daughter, Tina Hartley of Mercer Island, Wash.; and three grandchildren.