Clarence D. "Lucky" Lester (February 23, 1923 – March 17, 1986) was an American

fighter pilot A fighter pilot or combat pilot is a Military aviation, military aviator trained to engage in air-to-air combat, Air-to-ground weaponry, air-to-ground combat and sometimes Electronic-warfare aircraft, electronic warfare while in the cockpit of ...

who served in the

332nd Fighter Group The 332d Expeditionary Operations Group is a provisional air expeditionary group of the United States Air Force's Air Combat Command, currently active. It was inactivated on 8 May 2012 and reactivated 16 November 2014. The group forms part of ...

, commonly known as the

Tuskegee Airmen The Tuskegee Airmen were a group of primarily African American military pilots (fighter and bomber) and airmen who fought in World War II. They formed the 332nd Fighter Group and the 477th Fighter Group, 477th Bombardment Group (Medium) of th ...

, during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He was one of the first African-American military aviators in the

United States Army Air Corps The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical ri ...

, the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

and later the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

. Lester best known as one of two Tuskegee pilots who shot down three

Focke-Wulf Fw 190 The Focke-Wulf Fw 190, nicknamed ''Würger'' (Shrike) is a German single-seat, single-engine fighter aircraft designed by Kurt Tank at Focke-Wulf in the late 1930s and widely used during World War II. Along with its well-known counterpart, the ...

Messerschmitt Bf 109 The Messerschmitt Bf 109 is a monoplane fighter aircraft that was designed and initially produced by the Nazi Germany, German aircraft manufacturer Messerschmitt#History, Bayerische Flugzeugwerke (BFW). Together with the Focke-Wulf Fw 190, the ...

on a single mission; the other pilot was Captain Joseph Elsberry. Lester flew a

P-51 Mustang The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is an American long-range, single-seat fighter aircraft, fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II and the Korean War, among other conflicts. The Mustang was designed in 1940 by a team headed ...

nicknamed "Miss Pelt." He and Elsberry are two of only four Tuskegee Airmen to have earned three aerial victories in a single day of combat.

Early life, family, education

Lester was born on February 23, 1923, in

Richmond, Virginia Richmond ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. Incorporated in 1742, Richmond has been an independent city (United States), independent city since 1871. ...

.American Air Museum in Britain. "Clarence D Lester." http://www.americanairmuseum.com/person/241747 Raised in

Chicago, Illinois Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, Lester attended

West Virginia State College West Virginia State University (WVSU) is a public historically black, land-grant university in Institute, West Virginia, United States. Founded in 1891 as the West Virginia Colored Institute. It is one of the original 19 land-grant colleges a ...

where he was a star football player. On May 17, 1946, Lester was initiated as a fraternity brother of

Kappa Alpha Psi Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. () is a List of African-American fraternities, historically African American Fraternities and sororities, fraternity. Since the fraternity's founding on January 5, 1911, at Indiana University Bloomington, it has n ...

, Iota chapter at the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

World War II

The

is the popular name of a group of

African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...

military pilots (fighter and bomber) who fought in

. They formed the

and the

477th Bombardment Group 477th may refer to: *477th Bombardment Squadron, inactive United States Air Force unit *477th Fighter Group, the Air Force Reserve Command's first F-22A Raptor unit *477th Tactical Fighter Squadron, inactive United States Air Force unit See also

of the

. Lester recalled that "Being a black pilot in the 1940s was like being a pro athlete today ... We knew we were special, that we would have to prove something. This was the first chance blacks had had outside of working in the kitchen or the possibility icof being a truck driver." White pilots would fly around 50 combat missions but because there were no replacements, black pilots of the Tuskegee Airmen flew around 70 missions. During the war he flew over 90 combat missions. Overall, Lester was one of only nine Tuskegee Airmen pilots with at least three confirmed kills during

Awards

Congressional Gold Medal The Congressional Gold Medal is the oldest and highest civilian award in the United States, alongside the Presidential Medal of Freedom. It is bestowed by vote of the United States Congress, signed into law by the president. The Gold Medal exp ...

awarded to the Tuskegee Airmen in 2006

After WWII

While flying an

F-84E Thunderjet The Republic F-84 Thunderjet is an American turbojet fighter-bomber aircraft. Originating as a 1944 United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) proposal for a "day fighter", the F-84 first flew in 1946. Although it entered service in 1947, the Thunde ...

it experienced mechanical failure and exploded into flames forcing Lester to yank his ejection seat and parachute from the inflamed jet, which made him "only the sixth pilot ever to use the ejection method." Later in his career he also worked with the infamous "Whiz kids" that Robert McNamara assembled at the

Office of the Secretary of Defense The Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) is a headquarters-level staff of the United States Department of Defense. It is the principal civilian staff element of the U.S. Secretary of Defense, and it assists the Secretary in carrying out au ...

. In 1969 Lester retired as a full colonel and was then appointed as associate director of social services in Rockville, Maryland. In 1969, Lester, along with three Department of Defense analysts, also founded the company which would later become

ICF International ICF International, Inc. is an American Public company, publicly traded consulting and technology services company based in Reston, Virginia. The company was founded in 1969, and as of 2019, had US $1.48 billion in revenue, with approximately 9,0 ...

following his military service. The original Inner City Fund was a venture capital firm aimed at supporting minority-owned businesses to achieve government contracts. In the early 1970s the company transitioned toward a consulting model and has now achieved over $1.5B in annual revenue.

Personal life

Lester was

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

Bibliography

Notes References * * - Total pages: 319 * - Total pages: 180 * - Total pages: 336 * - Total pages: 424 * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lester, Clarence D. 1923 births 1986 deaths United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II Aviators from Virginia Military personnel from Richmond, Virginia Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States) Recipients of the Air Medal Tuskegee Airmen United States Air Force officers United States Army Air Forces officers African-American aviators African-American Catholics