I have been traveling via airlines for along time, and I can honestly say that I have never seen African American airline pilots in all the years I have traveled. I know they exist; I just haven’t seen any personally. History was made February of this year when the first all-Black female flight crew traveled from Atlanta to Nashville.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cNcxD4XFU-M
Even though those lovely ladies have been seen on TV, they are truly an exception.
To learn more about African American airline pilots, I contacted the Organization of Black Airline Pilots (OBAP). Who knew that this organization existed? Anyway, I wanted to know how many Black pilots there were in the aviation industry. The actual number of African American pilots is unknown (1). However, I did learn that there are 7 Black female captains. Based on those figures alone, it is safe to say that Black pilots are virtually invisible in this industry.
Thus, I would like to share the stories of two airline captains, Robert Holmes and Stacey Marcus. I am certain that they have not been seen on TV. Stay tuned for their stories on As NOT Seen on TV.
(1) I submitted an Information Request to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to find out how many total pilots there are; the number of Black pilots; and the number of female Black-pilots. I am still awaiting a response