Lt. Col. Harry T. Stewart Jr.

Lt. Col. Harry T. Stewart Jr., a native of Newport News, Virginia, enlisted in the Tuskegee Airmen as a teenager from New York City. At 18, he embarked on his aviation journey, training at Tuskegee Army Air Field before heading to Italy with the 301st Fighter Squadron of the 332nd Fighter Group in 1944.

Stewart distinguished himself in combat, flying 43 missions and achieving the remarkable feat of downing three German Focke-Wulf 190s in one day. He received the Distinguished Flying Cross for this accomplishment.

Post-war, Stewart’s achievements continued as part of the winning team from the 332nd Fighter Group in the U.S. Air Force fighter gunnery competition in 1949. Despite flying outdated P-47 aircraft, they secured victory in the conventional aircraft division.

After an honorable discharge in 1950 and subsequent service as a Reservist, Stewart earned a mechanical engineering degree from New York University in 1963. He went on to a successful career as vice president of the ANR Pipeline Company in Detroit, Michigan, a major interstate natural gas pipeline operator. Stewart’s enduring passion for aviation led him to earn a commercial glider pilot’s license at the impressive age of 81.