Tuskegee Airmen

A detailed Summary of Tuskegee Airmen

Throughout history, African Americans have been met by prejudice and mistreatment. This attitude towards blacks has not only been seen in the public work place and social activities, but in the armed forces as well. Since early American military history, blacks have always been involved in defending our country. However, they were never really given full credit and recognition for their hard work and patriotism. Not only were they unrecognized, but they were required to serve in all black units. World War II was no different and there was still deep segregation of the armed forces. Once the United States entered the war, all the black leaders and black press protested against this segregation and treatment of blacks as inferior. This resulted in the formation of the "Tuskegee Experiment" in March of 1941 (The Tuskegee Airmen, p.27). It was to "prove" racial deficiencies in intelligence and concentration of black pilots compared to white pilots. This experiment definitiv!

ely backfired on its founders and the Institute successfully graduated 992 pilots including Generals Daniel James, Benjamin O. Davis Jr. and Lucius Theus. Although it took much more than graduating well-educated, capable pilots to change the story of segr

In 1949, an independent United States Air Force was established. It was the first branch of the armed forces to implement Truman's Executive Order Number 9981. This Order desegregated the Armed Forces. After the integration of the Air force, by 1950 the entire armed services became completely racially integrated. Executive Order 9981 is a direct result of the bravery and accomplishment of the Tuskegee Airmen. We, as a country, owe these men our gratitude. Not only did they fight hard to defend our country during World War II, but also fought hard to help us move toward a country with true freedom for all.

The first training of the cadets was done at the Division of Aeronautics at the Institute. After a cadet completed his first training to become a pilot there, he was then sent to the Tuskegee Airfield for actual flight training in a combat aircraft. These first cadets to be trained would become the 99th Pursuit Squadron. This squadron was designed to consist of 33 to 35 pilots and 278 ground crew members (Black Knights, p. 27). The first men from the first class, which graduated on March 7, 1942, were Benjamin O. Davis Jr., George Roberts, Lemuel Curtis, Charles Debow and Mac Ross. As each class graduated, more men were added to the 99th Pursuit Squadron until they were ready for combat.

On April 24, 1943, the 99th Pursuit Squadron arrived in North Africa to become part of the war and start what would become one of the greatest legends of World War II (Black Knights, p. 15). Their first mission was a strafing attack on Pantelleria Island and occurred on June 2, 1943. Then on October 9, 1943, they were combined with the 79th fighter group, which was an all-white group led by Colonel Earl Bates. This was the first time they were integrated with white troops and were no longer restricted to escort missions of bombers. They flew missions together for almost a year. Operation Strangle was the last mission with the 79th and also concluded the existence of the 99th squadron. Surprisingly for the time, the white and black pilots and crewmembers worked well together. On July 4, 1944, the 99th joined three other squadrons - the 100th, the 301st and the 302nd - to form the 332nd fighter group. The members of the 99th had voiced opposition to this combination, thou!

his was the perfect place for the Air Force experiment.

"Tuskegee Airmen: the Black Redtail Angels, heroes of World War II and Freeman Field

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squadron, he then became the Commander of the 332nd fighter group until the end of the war. After the war on July 1, 1945, Davis became the first Negro to command a military post in the United States. Then, in 1955 he was appointed to the position of Vice Commander of the 13th Air Force. In 1957 he became the Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations and appointed to Major General. On February 1, 1970, General Davis retired after a long a successful career. He was a highly decorated soldier with eight special awards which include: the Air Force Distinguished Service Medal, Army Distinguished Service Medal, the Silver Star, the Legion of Merit with two oak leaves, the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Air Medal with four clusters, the Air Force Commendation Medal with two oak leafs, and the Philippines Legion of Honor.

The legend of the Tuskegee Airmen had its real life beginning on April 19, 1941. Eleanor Roosevelt was visiting Tuskegee and met the leader of the program, Charles "Chief" Anderson. She asked if Negroes could really fly and he responded by saying "Certainly we can; as a matter of fact, would you like to take a ride?" She accepted over all the objections of her secret service agents. Then Mrs. Roosevelt and "Chief" went for a half an hour ride in his Piper J-3 Cub. Upon touchdown, she replied

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Category: History