(CNN) Retired US Air Force Lt. Col. Robert Friend, one of the last surviving members of the legendary Tuskegee Airmen during World War II, has died, his daughter said. He was 99.

Friend's daughter told CNN affiliate KCBS her father was surrounded by friends and family when he died Friday in California. The cause of death was sepsis, Karen Crumlich, Friend's daughter, said.

"...We called the chaplain and we did a prayer," Crumlich said. "And during the prayer, right when we said amen, he took his last breath."

Friend flew 142 combat missions during World War II, including missions in North Africa and Europe, according to CAF Red Tail Squadron, a group dedicated to preserving the legacy of America's first African-American military pilots.

Born in Columbia, South Carolina, in 1920, Friend attempted to enlist in the Army to fly but was turned away, according to an account published by the Red Tail Squadron. Undaunted, he took aviation courses at Lincoln University in Pennsylvania.

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