Page 43 - Appendix A

1985 Black Male SUPT student

What would you say was the percentage of blacks was in your training class?
10%.

Describe how the number of minorities in your pilot training environment compared to your
high school, college and home environment (growing up).
Neighborhood / high school was about 95% black. College (USAF Academy), about 10-15%
black.

If there was a significant difference describe what impact it had (if any) on your success in
training and why?

College helped me transition to a professional / personal world that was vastly different from
my upbringing. I knew I stood out, so I knew not to be “average.”

In your opinion, does make a difference, regarding your success, how many other black pilots
are going through training at the same time as you? Why or why not?
To a small degree. There maybe was a little added pressure I put on myself because we were in
so few numbers. However, I mainly felt it was me versus the program, and to perform on each
syllabus event

In your opinion, does it make a difference what the racial demographic of your training cadre

or leadership team is? Why or why not? Please share any specific examples from your
experience?
Really depends. If every leader or instructor is FAIR and evaluates according to the syllabus or
course guidelines, it should not matter. It is always nice to see for minorities to see examples of
fellow minorities reach positions of authority, but it still comes down to individuals performing.

In your opinion, or based on your experience, is there a difference for a black person going
through pilot training compared to a white person? If so, do you feel that the difference
positively or negatively impacts the success of black student pilots?

Again, I think blacks in our society are under more of a critical eye. It is hard to quantify
however because evaluation and critique is so subjective. I made sure I knew what the
standards were for all events… I would ask questions of my instructors making sure they knew I
knew the standards.