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Over 400 African Americans enlisted to be in the new division. The entrance requirements were very strict, including high experience requirements and a series of IQ and other intelligence tests. Because of discriminatory2 policies in the Army, all the officers in charge of the new recruits were white.
The practical training took place at the Tuskegee Air Fields in Alabama, and the trainees also took courses at Tuskegee University nearby. They quickly proved their personal drive to learn and their skills as pilots. Their proficiency3 struck blows at previous race-based policies in the military; they soon needed to undergo highly advanced training that African Americans had previously been barred from receiving.
The Tuskegee Air program gained national attention when First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt paid them a visit in 1941. She rode as a passenger of pilot C. Alfred “Chief” Anderson, who had become an unofficial leader and tutor in the group because of his skills. After the trip, she remarked, “Well, you can fly all right.”