(WFLA/NBC) – Aircraft flew in formation over the home of a former Tuskegee airman in Lunchburg, Virginia recently as his family watched from their home.
The flyover was planned to celebrate Alfred Farrar’s 100th birthday Saturday, but he died just days before the celebration.
Instead of cancelling, the pilots performed a memorial tribute.
“Standing in the briefing room and talking, you could definitely tell the air was much more somber and you couldn’t help but get choked up a little bit when we were talking about Alfred and his legacy,” said pilot Kyle McDaniel.
Farrar was among the last living Tuskegee airmen, an elite group of Black military pilots who served during World War II.
After the war, Farrar worked for the Federal Aviation Administration.
The flyover involved about 20 pilots and volunteers.
At the end of the flyover, some of the pilots performed a missing man formation in Farrar’s memory.
