February 22, 2007
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Profile America for the 22nd day of Black History Month. One of the more colorful personalities of the early days of aviation was Hubert Julian. Born in Trinidad, he was among the first African-Americans to earn his pilot's license. He attempted a transatlantic flight in 1924, surviving a crash at sea. He ultimately made a successful crossing in 1929. Julian was the first black to fly coast to coast, and held a number of distance and endurance records. Hubert Julian's many flying exploits earned him the nickname "The Black Eagle." Today in the U.S., some 120,000 people make their living as pilots and flight engineers about 2 percent of them African-American. This special Profile America for Black History Month is a public service of the U.S. Census Bureau.