Moton Field in Tuskegee, Alabama, was the primary flight training site for African-American military pilot candidates during World War II and stood at a turning point in American military and civil rights history. After African Americans had long been barred from flying for the U.S. military, pressure from civil rights groups and the Black press helped create an all-African-American pursuit squadron in 1941. Between 1941 and 1945, Tuskegee Institute trained more than 1,000 Black aviators here before they advanced to Tuskegee Army Air Field. Their success under segregation and prejudice helped prove African Americans could serve in sophisticated aviation roles and contributed to the eventual integration of the U.S. military.