POWERGRAMS

38 grand opening event in spring of 2018," he said. The B-25 was flown at Tuskegee Army Air Field from 1945-46 as a trainer. The Tuskegee B-25 crews never saw combat. For that reason, the plane often gets overlooked among the more publicized Tuskegee Airmen fighter jets – such as the P-51 "Redtail"- that fought in Europe and North Africa. But Barsanti says the B-25 Tuskegee Airmen have their own claim to fame. Officers from the 477th Bomber Group stationed at Freeman Army Airfield in Indiana tried to integrate an all-white officers club. More than 162 arrests were made and three officers were court- martialed. "It served as a pivotal moment in the history of the civil rights years before what we now regard as the modern civil rights movement," Barsanti said. "The entire display dedicated to the Tuskegee Airmen at the Southern Museum of Flight provides for more than an exhibition," Barsanti says. "It represents a spotlight shining down on a significant period in American history. This tribute highlights such an extraordinary group of men and women who continue to provide inspiration for anyone who dares to dream." The Southern Museum of Flight, founded in 1966, displays civilian, military and experimental aircraft, with engines, models and other artifacts. One of the original crop-dusters flown by the forerunner of Delta Air Lines is included, as are the 70 member plaques of the Alabama Aviation Hall of Fame. The museum features flight simulators popular with children and teens. Several fighter jets can be seen inside the perimeter of the airport fence along 43rd Avenue and 68th Street. Clockwise from top left: a U.S. Air Force F-86D Sabre jet; featured on the History Channel, this B-25 was recovered after 62 years at the bottom of Lake Murray, South Carolina; Restoration Manager Zack Edison with the fuselage of the B-25; a 1920s-era Huff-Daland "Duster" biplane.

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