"Above the sky" is exactly how Pineda feels when he's flying. After taxiing onto the runway (a flight instructor watching his every move), he hits the gas. The Red Tail -- named after Tuskegee Air man Thornhill -- begins barreling down the strip. Soon, it's floating high above Compton.

"Being in the air, you can't explain with words, but you can explain with action," he said. "If I didn't have this place, I'd be a lazy boy having F's in school. Now, I'm one of the top students in the class. It's like taking baby steps, but now you can run."

*To contribute to Tomorrow's Aeronautical Museum, visit their website at http://www.tamuseum.org