Eugene Bullard spent his days operating an elevator at Rockefeller Center. People stepped inside, told him which floor they wanted, and rode in silence. Few realized the man at the controls had once been one of the most remarkable aviators of his era. Born in Georgia in 1895, Bullard left America as a teenager and eventually settled in France. When World War I erupted, he enlisted in the French Foreign Legion and fought on the front lines. He was badly wounded at Verdun, but during recovery he found a new path—aviation. In 1917, he earned his pilot's wings, becoming the first African American military pilot. He flew combat missions for France, yet when the United States entered the war, his request to fly for his own country was ignored. After the war, Bullard built a life in Paris. He managed nightclubs, performed as a musician, and moved among famous artists and entertainers. When World War II reached France, he once again took up the fight, suffering another serious injury while helping defend the nation he loved. Eventually, he returned to New York with his daughters. To support his family, Bullard worked as an elevator operator. Day after day, he carried office workers and visitors between floors while few knew they were standing beside a decorated war hero. France never forgot him. In 1954, he was invited to help rekindle the flame at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Paris. Five years later, he received the Legion of Honor, and in 1960, Charles de Gaulle publicly celebrated him as a French hero. Bullard died in 1961. More than three decades later, in 1994, the United States finally recognized him by posthumously commissioning him as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force. For years, Eugene Bullard guided strangers to their destinations. The honor he had earned took much longer to arrive.