General Daniel "Chappie" James Jr.
He was born in 1920 in Pensacola, Florida, near the Pensacola Naval Air Station. In his teens, he pointed to a plane flying above his home and said that one day he was going to fly. His friends quickly reminded him of his one handicap - he was black. Chappie didn't see it that way, however; he knew someday he would fly.
- Became a member of the Tuskegee Airmen in July 1943
- During the Korean Conflict flew 101 combat missions in the P-51 and F-80
- In 1966 was named vice commander of the 8th Tactical Fighter Wing in Thailand, flying 78 combat missions over North Vietnam
- As commander of an Air Force base in Libya, Chappie faced down a threatening Libyan Colonel named Mohamar Khadafi over his attempted entry into the General’s base
- First African-American four-star general in the history of the USAF