The Air Force Academy and Colorado Springs community is commemorating the life of one of its finest Wednesday.

Funeral services for the Air Force Academy’s sixth superintendent, Retired Air Force Lt. Gen. A.P. Clark, are taking place right now at the Cadet Chapel.

Gen. Clark died March 8 at the age of 96. A resident of Colorado Springs, General Clark was the sixth superintendent of the U.S. Air Force Academy, from Aug. 1, 1970, to July 31, 1974.

The Air Force Academy released the following information about Gen. Clark's military career:
The general was a 1936 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy, and went on to a flying career after graduation. He went to England in June 1942 with the 31st Fighter Group, the first American fighter unit in the European Theater of Operations. He was shot down over Abbeville, France, in July 1942, and spent 33 months as a Prisoner of War. As a POW, then-Lt. Col. Clark continued his efforts to resist the enemy by managing the production and hiding of escape supplies for his fellow prisoners. His efforts helped support the 1944 escape of 76 POWs from Stalag Luft III, and that escape served as inspiration for the 1963 film, The Great Escape.

After retiring from active duty, the general stayed active with the Air Force Academy. He headed up the Friends of the Library, which benefits the Cadet Library, concentrating on the library’s Special Collections. General Clark on was instrumental in creating an extensive collection of materials and histories from his POW days in Stalag Luft III.

Flags at the AFA are at half-staff on Wednesday.

The funeral will be followed by a graveside service at the Academy Cemetery.