Aviation History

The Freeman Field Mutiny 477th Bomb Group members in front of a B-25

In 1945 a group of 101 African-American Officers challenged the "Separate But Equal" view of their base commander, resulting in the The Freeman Field Mutiny.

The Curtiss-Wright P-40L Warhawk was armed with FOUR .50-caliber machine guns.

1st Lt. Charles Blakesly Hall, U.S. Army Air Corps

Its July 2nd, 1943, and the pilot of a P-40 Warkawk takes careful aim at a German Luftwafe fighter targeting B-25 bombers over Sicily. Soon the German aircraft is streaking earthward to its death. ...

A photo of Bessie Coleman standing on the wing of her Jenny in 1922

Bessie Coleman Soars Across the Sky

The 1920s and 1930s were the heyday of early aviation, but African Americans were excluded from all of the fun. That is, until a smart, attractive African American girl decided she just wouldn't ac...

The Maker of Pilots: Willa B. Brown

Willa B. Brown, Aviatrix and Maker of Pilots Willa Beatrice Brown was born on January 22, 1906, to Eric Brown (an African American father) and Hallie Brown (her Native American mother) in Glasgow, ...