In 1967, a press conference announced four Air Force officers selected for training in the U.S. Air Force's Manned Orbital Laboratory (MOL) program, El Segundo, California. One of the four, Major Robert Lawrence, was the first African-American to qualify for training in the US space program. His career was cut short only a few months later, when he died on 8 Dec 1967 on a training flight in a Starfighter jet that crashed at Edwards Air Force Base, California. (Several years earlier, another African-American had been selected for the MOL program, on 31 Mar 1961, but not subsequently selected for training). It was not until 30 Aug 1983 that thefirst African-American entered space: Col. Guion S. Bluford, Jr.*