Divers travel from near and far to explore wreckage of Tuskegee Airman's plane in Lake Huron

In a photo provided by NOAA Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary, the wreckage of a P-39 is shown at the bottom of Lake Huron on Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2015. Seven divers spent a week archaeologically documenting for the first time the wreckage of the plane that was piloted by a member of the famed Tuskegee Airmen when it crashed seven decades ago during a training exercise. (Stephanie Gandulla/NOAA- Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary via AP) (The Associated Press)

In this Aug. 13, 2015, photo, members of a dive team from left, Wayne Lusardi, Erik Denson, Stephanie Gandulla, Kamau Sadiki, Melody Garrett, Jay Haigler and Ernie Franklin pose for a photo in Port Huron, Mich. The seven spent a week archaeologically documenting for the first time the wreckage of a plane that was piloted by a member of the Tuskegee Airmen. (AP Photo/Mike Householder) (The Associated Press)

PORT HURON, Mich. – Seven divers recently spent a week descending to the bottom of Lake Huron to officially document for the first time the wreckage of a plane piloted by a member of the famed Tuskegee Airmen.

For them, it was a labor of love.

The team included five members of Diving with a Purpose, a nonprofit that works to conserve and protect maritime history with an emphasis on African-American contributions. The Tuskegee Airmen were the U.S. military's first black aviators.

DWP member Jay Haigler (HAY'-gler) says the remnants of the P-39 that crashed during a training exercise brought tears to his eyes.

Its pilot, 2nd Lt. Frank Moody, was killed in the 1944 crash near Port Huron. The wreckage was discovered a year ago, but hadn't been formally documented until the August expedition.