Memorial on Long Island prompts questions about influential black pilot

A memorial on Long Island honoring famous pilots from the early 20th century prompted scrutiny about whether the area historical society had failed to recognize an influential black pilot named Bessie Coleman. That tribute is in the Town of Hempstead where Curtiss Airfield used to be. According to historians, the airfield was a busy place in the late 1920s and 1930s before John F. Kennedy International Airport and LaGuardia Airport took over air travel in the region. More recently, the old Curtiss Airfield was transformed into a shopping center and the Valley Stream Historical Society placed a historical marker at the center to honor pioneering pilots who had taken off and landed from that spot. Danielle Leigh has more: https://7ny.tv/2VoAYvI Check out more Eyewitness News - http://7ny.tv/2suJHTd OUR SOCIAL MEDIA – FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/ABC7NY/ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/abc7ny INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/abc7ny/ SNAP: abc7ny PODCASTS: http://abc7ny.com/podcasts/ NEW HERE? – Hi! We’re abc7NY, also known as Channel 7 on TV, home to Eyewitness News, New York’s Number 1 news. We hope you love us on YouTube as much as you do on television! NEW TIPS: Online: http://abc7ny.com/submit-a-news-tip/2599968/ Phone: 917-260-7700 Email: abc7ny@abc.com #pilot #longisland #aviation