250px | |
Nationality | American |
Born | 28 April 1969 |
New York City, New York, United States | |
Died | 19 May 1989 |
near Payson, Arizona, United States | |
Cause of Death | Plane crash |
World Stock Car Lites | |
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races run over 2 season(s). | |
Rookie Season | 1988 |
Team(s) | Stafford Race Engineering |
Championships | |
Pole Positions | |
Wins | |
WSCC Canon Driver |
Alan Richard Stafford (28 April 1969 - 19 May 1989) was an American race car driver who competed in the World Stock Car Lites. The son of Charlie Stafford and grandson of Peter Stafford, he was killed in a private plane crash en route to Phoenix, Arizona in 1989.
Early Life[edit | edit source]
Racing Career[edit | edit source]
Death[edit | edit source]
Stafford was killed in a plane crash in the early morning hours of Friday, May 19, 1989. He was flying from Denver, Colorado on a private plane - after a sponsor visit with the Gates Corporation - to Phoenix, Arizona, where he was scheduled to compete in the World Stock Car Lites race at Phoenix International Raceway on May 20. The plane lost contact with air traffic control prior to approach to the airport, and crashed in Tonto National Forest near Payson, Arizona. NTSB investigations revealed that the pilot had not been certified for nighttime flying, and had forged his required medical documentation.
Stafford was buried at Saint Charles Cemetery in Farmingdale, New York; his funeral was attended by numerous World Stock Car Championship personnel, including CEO Jack Crawford. Stafford is buried alongside his brother, Danny, who died of injuries in a testing accident at Daytona ten months later, and his father, Charlie Stafford, who died in 2018. His grandfather, uncle, and mother, along with numerous other members of the Stafford family, are also buried nearby.