Mon February 4, 2013 African Americans Fly High With Math And
Science Originally published on Mon February 4, 2013 12:48 pm
This Black History Month, Tell Me More is taking a look at
African Americans in the STEM fields (science, technology,
engineering and math) who are inspiring future generations.
Today, Barrington Irving shares how his sky high dreams became a
reality. A chance encounter in his parents' bookstore put him on
a path that would make him the youngest person and first African
American to fly solo around the world. Barrington Irving
remembers a man walking into the store dressed in a pilot's
uniform. The man asked whether Irving might consider a future in
aviation. "I immediately just said to him, I don't think I'm
smart enough to do it," Irving remembers/ "Then I asked him how
much money he made and after he answered that question, I took
an interest in aviation." Irving's success was far from a sure
thing. His family immigrated to the United States from Jamaica
when Irving was six. Private fl