Iain Lanphier aspires to attend the Air Force Academy and one day join the Space Force.
A 13-year-old with dreams of carrying on his family's military legacy was among President Trump's special guests at his State of the Union address in Washington Tuesday.
Iain Lanphier of Scottsdale, Arizona, got a standing ovation when Trump introduced him in the House of Representatives.
"He aspires to go to the Air Force Academy and then, he as his eye on the Space Force," Trump said. "As Ian says, 'most people look up at space, I want to look down on the world.'"
Alongside Iain stood his great-grandfather Charles McGee, 100, who is one of the last survivors of the Tuskegee Airmen, a group of African American pilots who fought in World War II.
"After more than 130 combat missions in World War II, he came back to a country still struggling for Civil Rights and went on to serve America in Korea and Vietnam," Trump said, noting he recently signed a bill giving McGee an honorary promotion to brigadier general for his service.
Iain has already started following in his great-grandfather's footsteps.
Last summer, the eighth-grader was the top graduate of the Aerospace Career Education program, sponsored by the Organization of Black Aerospace Professionals, according to an online biography published by the White House ahead of the address.
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