One of the most magnetic people I know established my new favorite non-profit aimed at exposing a wider range of children to the thrills of aviation.  Legacy Flight Academy accomplishes this goal at one-day, Eyes Above the Horizon events that take place in various cities around the county.  Students interact with diverse pilots who instill the legacy of the Tuskegee Airmen and share tales of their flying adventures.  The highlight of the day is an introductory flight in the cockpit of a single-engine plane.  All of this is provided free of charge to anyone who takes advantage of the opportunity.  I’d heard so much about this award-winning organization that I had to get involved. So I boarded a plane to fly to Houston to volunteer.

Legacy Flight Academy: Eyes Above The Horizon

Early on a Saturday morning children start filtering through the Lone Star Flight Museum. I’m charged with leading a group of 20 or so 5^th and 6^th graders to their stations. The day is divided into four parts: introductory flight, Tuskegee Airmen legacy lesson, museum scavenger hunt, and hands-on simulation. Inquisitive, little minds absorb all the information and start making connections with context they’ve been provided.   When they ascend into the sky, a transformation takes place.  Packed full of new experiences, their little bodies come back down to Earth, but their perspective never does. I have the privilege of watching it all take place from a front row view.

While shepherding the children through the galleries on a scavenger hunt, something becomes apparent for the first time. Of all the exhibits on aviation, Bessie Colman was the only black female aviator featured…in the entire, huge museum! Granted it’s a Texas-heritage aviation museum and Ms. Colman was a native Texan, surrounded by all the aviation history gives the appearance that Bessie Coleman was one of a kind. She wasn’t.  The stories of Mildred Hammons Carter, Willa Brown, and Janet Bragg are equally fascinating, especially for their time.  They taught countless other black men and women to fly.  Even with my background in history, spending my life in the Air Force, and teaching Air Force History, I had not been fully cognizant of the dearth of aviators that look like me until this moment.

We laud the Tuskegee Airmen as the nation’s first military unit for African-American pilots. However, it wasn’t for all African-American pilots; just the male ones. Words matter, and so do the omission of words. When we leave out the word “male,” although perhaps implied, it glosses over the lack of opportunity for black women. Not explicitly stating the U.S. Army’s Tuskegee Flight School Experiment solely selected black men alters the context from a sense of inclusion for all black people to the reality of the exclusion of over half the black population.

While it is also essential to recognize that the U.S. military barred women in general from combat, and thus fighter pilot slots, during World War II, it’s also crucial to make abundantly clear, that black, female pilots, although qualified for non-combat flights, faced both gender and racial discrimination.  Even today, unless you specifically hunt for the contributions of black, female aviators, you won’t find them mentioned in movies or websites including Tuskegee University’s own. Even the supporting contributions women provided, to include training the Tuskegee Airmen to fly, are omitted.  

The same is true for the Women’s Auxiliary Army Corps (WAAC) and Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP). It wasn’t an inclusive program for all women. It specifically disqualified black women. So it wasn’t a Women’s Auxiliary Army Corps. It more accurately should be called the “White Women’s Auxiliary Army Corps” with a few waivers for non-black Women of Color.

I’d always identified with both groups of ground-breaking pioneers, only to realize that I wouldn’t have been welcomed in either.  We are still witnessing the early years of black female aviation. The first black woman to fly in combat was in 2001! That’s 60 years after the Tuskegee Airmen and WASP! Recognizing neither group would have had a place for me to fly was depleting as well as telling. 

After the all-day event wrapped up, a pilot for United Airlines invited the Legacy Flight Academy volunteers to crash at her sprawling secondary home. Fewer than 150 African-American women hold a pilot’s license (airline, commercial, military or instructor); she’s one of them. She’s also a founding member of Sisters of the Skies, a non-profit organization founded in 2015.   This organization doesn’t just accept black women as members, Sisters of the Skies is dedicated to increasing the number of black female aviators.  The friend who invited me to volunteer, a military flight instructor, took the lead in conducting a debrief and After Action Report to gain consensus on what went right and what could be done better next time.

Legacy Flight Wrap Up

Someone once told me, “It’s either first class or no class.” Eyes Above the Horizon is first class all the way.  I’m still impressed that people that I call friends could dream this experience and turn it into an extraordinary reality. From the expansive museum and its knowledgeable staff, the pilots who volunteered their aircraft, fuel, and time, to the leaders who organized the event, everything was fantastic.  This community undertaking drew in over 100 Houston-area kids. Since this was my first experience with the Legacy Flight I only had praise to offer.

It’s About Belonging

With all the children gone, the volunteers and staff gathered at a local pilot’s home. Chillin’ around a kitchen, eating pizza and wings, laughing, joking, and contributing to the lighthearted revelry, we conducted a business meeting. I was in awe of the moment.  There I was, surrounded by black excellence. It’s a situation that rarely happens for me, yet everything about it was familiar. Surrounded by people that I just met earlier that day, I felt at home.  I knew it would be a long while before this happened again, so I intentionally captured the moment in my mind. 

For instance, I’d estimate there are fewer than 10 black officers on my Air Force base. Without intentional efforts, I can go months without contact with peers from a similar cultural background.  aired with my history of perpetually being “the only one,” camaraderie with black peers has been an infrequent indulgence my whole life.  Even more infrequent as an Air Force officer is the opportunity to observe other black officers lead and the access to socialize with aviators, let alone black aviators. 

Around 10 flyers or so floated around the house. In addition to my flight instructor buddy, there’s one of his flight students, a bright, young woman who divided her attention between her studies and the lively conversation.  Another aviator present, a fighter pilot who earned his flying license before his driver’s license shared a video of his first flight solo as a child. A Surveillance and Reconnaissance pilot recalled highlights of the day which included the children asking if he can see outer space from his aircraft…he can!  The question and answer session took an awkward turn when the kiddos got very officious about his bathroom habits while wearing a spacesuit. He’d just recently bought his own plane for recreational flying.

A commercial airline pilot, who also flies for the Air Force reserves lamented his economical travel arrangements of riding shotgun to Texas, sitting on the uncomfortable hump (also known as the jump seat) between two the two pilots flying the plane. Navigators, air battle managers, and a few others with careers in aviation talked and joked with the group. And then there was me. As the furthest removed from aviation, I was a guest within the group but very much deeply embraced. We all just exchanged ideas, vibed, and enjoyed one another’s company. It was a pleasure.

I recalled a former, non-black Naval Aviator who once said Top Gun was what inspired him to fly.  Nothing about Top Gun appealed to me. When I watch Top Gun, I see an environment where I’m likely to get touched without my consent. In that situation, I can predict that I’ll have perspectives and ideas to share, but the group will dismiss them. Talked over and interrupted will be standard behavior.

Stanford University researchers Robin Ely and Debra Meyerson published a study that indicates that the male culture prevents women from excelling in corporate America. Other studies suggest that it is specifically White Male Culture that detours those who are not white and male from participation or struggling when they do.  I’d surmise that’s a major reason minorities and women avoid careers in aviation.  In other words, it’s not necessarily a lack of exposure, interest, or ability; it’s the culture.

Another study states, “Like fish in water, many white men never have to leave their culture from birth to boardroom. Often they are unaware they have a culture that others must negotiate.” Perhaps people outside of this culture are like aquatic frogs. We can swim with the fish from time to time but eventually, need to come up for air. Until hanging out with these guys, I never knew there was air for a temporary reprieve.

Among this group, I don’t stand out. There is no foreign culture to navigate. 
My dual consciousness isn’t employed. I don’t have to walk on eggshells to avoid my entire race being stereotyped by any action that I do that’s perceived as negative. I don’t need to regulate myself into perfection in order to debunk stereotypes. Any positive attributes aren’t seen as exceptional for my race because being exceptionally brilliant and talented is expected. I’m not tone-policed. I’m not a novelty, token, or commodity. Around these folks, my voice is heard and appreciated.  Here, no topics are avoided. For example, we discussed the merits of attending Cornell versus Hampton for undergrad which largely centered on race, inclusion, and acceptance.  One of the volunteers, the only Caucasian aviator in the group, quietly listened. No one felt compelled to code switch to accommodate his comfort.  We were all free to be our authentic selves.

After Party Socialization

After stuffing our faces and concluding the meeting, we suited up for esprit de corps in the Houston nightlife. I did not stand out in the bar. It’s a rare occasion that going out with colleagues doesn’t include Journey, Bohemian Rhapsody, Copperhead Road, or Sweet Caroline. Although I’ve certainly had a blast belting out the words to Don’t Stop Believing and doing the Copperhead Road line dance, that music usually doesn’t make the cut to my celebration playlist.  It’s just as foreign to me as shouting, “tickie tockie tickie tockie” under an Octoberfest tent in Munich. Fun. But Foreign.

Lasting Effects of Legacy Flight Academy

After that weekend I did some research.  That research led me to the ground school at my local aero club the following Wednesday.  Not long after that, I took my first flight lesson with me in control of the throttle. I Flew A Daggum Airplane! I finally understood the hype my aviator friends had been talking about. That night my dreams were about flying.  This is the impact of representation. Having access to a flying community whom I could identify and where I belonged with was all it took to convince me to consider aviation after decades of being aviation adjacent.

In short, it’s not enough to sell aviation as a cool thing to do. That doesn’t make flying any different from all the other cool stuff active, ambitious people do every day. People want to belong.  Deep down, everyone wants to be part of something wonderful; that’s the very reason I traveled to Houston in the first place. The camaraderie within an elite network is what makes this profession or hobby unique. Knowing there’s a tight-knit community of people like me and has always been a community like me, is the most significant selling point in encouraging diversity in aviation. Being part of the flying world touches on the top three of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs.  Who knew, I traveled to Houston to volunteer to plant seeds of aviation excellence in the impressionable minds of children not knowing Legacy Flight Academy would sow those seeds in me as well.

***If you’d like to be part of something great by supporting the early exposure to the thrill of aviation to a wide range of children, you can donate here or inquire about volunteer opportunities. To learn how you can bring Eyes Above The Horizon to your hometown check out the Legacyflightacademy.org website. You can also list Legacy Flight Academy as your Amazon Smile non-profit.  Or donate as a birthday gift to me on my Facebook link or LFA’s.