St. Louis ? Christopher Newman flew 84 missions as a fighter pilot in World War II with the Tuskegee Airmen.

Sixty-three years later, Newman’s hometown is giving him and other local members of the all-black Tuskegee Airmen a heroes’ salute.

At a ceremony Saturday at Lambert Field, five men who were among the original Tuskegee fighter pilots received a bronze replica of a Congressional Gold Medal. Survivors of eight other airmen also got the honor.

In March, the White House bestowed the Congressional Gold Medal on the Tuskegee Airmen. The gold medal is on display at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington.