Col. Walter Watson Only African-American To Fly SR-71

Walter Watson, USAF colonel retired, the only African-American to fly the top-secret SR-71 spy plane, will speak on Friday, October 31, at Embry-Riddle's Daytona Beach campus.

His presentation, about his experiences as a navigator in the supersonic jet, will start at 2 pm in the atrium of the College of Aviation Building. It is free and open to the public.

Earlier in the day, at 9 am, Watson will speak to 310 sixth graders at Campbell Middle School in Daytona Beach, hosted by Embry-Riddle's aerospace-oriented enrichment program at the school.

Watson is one of only 96 crewmembers who flew the super secret aircraft that set altitude and speed records in the 1970s that still stand. The jet routinely cruised above 80,000 feet and at speeds faster than Mach 3 -- 2,100 miles per hour.

While in the Air Force, Watson was a flight commander in tactical fighter and strategic reconnaissance squadrons that flew F-4C/D/E, F-111D, and SR-71 aircraft.

After retiring from the Air Force, Watson served as Air Force ROTC (AFROTC) commander and professor of aerospace studies at North Carolina A&T State University, where he educated many African-American pilots, navigators, and female commissioned officers. His accomplishments led to leadership positions at AFROTC headquarters at Maxwell Air Force Base, where he supervised all scholarships for more than 5,000 students nationwide.

Watson is now senior aerospace science instructor for Junior AFROTC at the C.A. Johnson Preparatory Academy in Columbia, SC.

Among Watson's many honors are medals awarded by the US Air Force, Tuskegee Airmen Inc., and the Legion of Merit. He earned a master's degree in organizational behavior and human resource management from Chapman College and a bachelor's in mechanical engineering from Howard University.

Watson's visit to Embry-Riddle is being arranged by the university's Office of Diversity Initiatives and the Eagles Flight Team.

FMI: www.embryriddle.edu