Eleanor Roosevelt arrives at Tuskegee with Mary McLeod Bethune after a buoyant two-day trip. On meeting Lieutenant Colonel Thompson at the airfield, Eleanor corrects his slight by formally introducing Mary as a presidential adviser, signaling their shared purpose.

They tour the base and address rows of sharply assembled Black cadets. Eleanor gives a brief, supportive speech, then, despite the agenda, invites Mary to speak; Mary delivers an uplifting message about the cadets’ vital role. The two women then shake every soldier’s hand, a gesture that pointedly challenges custom.

When Thompson offers to show the planes, Eleanor instead requests the renowned chief flight instructor, Charles “Chief” Anderson. Anderson greets both women respectfully and explains the program’s rigorous ground and flight training, while noting the broader inequity: excellence without authorization to fight. Eleanor and Mary affirm they are there to address those inequities.

At the hangar, a line of trusted women journalists appears, invited by Eleanor to document the day. Thompson tries to expel them as a “safety risk,” but Eleanor asserts they are her guests and claims she cleared it with the President, though she has not. With the press ready, she reveals her real aim.

Eleanor asks Chief Anderson to take her up in a JP-3 Piper, intending to make a public statement breaking an interracial barrier. Thompson protests that no white woman has flown with a Black pilot and refuses to allow it. Eleanor overrules him, cites Anderson’s skill, and pointedly asks Anderson for his answer.