Retired Lt. Gen. Frank E. Petersen Jr., the first black Marine Corps aviator and officer promoted to brigadier general, died Tuesday. He was 83. Frank Petersen Jr., 83, first black #MarineCorps pilot and general http://t.co/vISLV8n2qZ pic.twitter.com/Udc9GS7XRi — Marine Corps Reserve (@MarForRes) August 27, 2015 Petersen was born March 2, 1932, in Topeka, Kansas.