THE TUSKEGEE AIRMEN

The Tuskegee Airmen

Abstract

World War II African American fighter pilots, bomber escorts, and ground support crew who, because of segregation in the armed forces, trained at Tuskegee Institute and a nearby training complex in Alabama. By the end of World War II, nearly 1,000 men had graduated from pilot training at Tuskegee. Of these, 450 served in combat overseas, and 66 of those pilots were killed in action. The Tuskegee airmen compiled an amazing combat record. None of the bombers they escorted was lost to enemy fighters, they destroyed 251 enemy aircraft, and the airmen were awarded more than 850 medals. Such achievements, which proved again the worth of blacks in the military, were largely responsible for the desegregation of the armed forces in 1948. The first aviation cadet class began at Tuskegee in July 1941. Cadets applied from all over the country, but they had to pass stringent entry examinations to qualify. Initial training took place at Tuskegee's Moton Field. From there, cadets were sent to Tuskegee Army Air Field for completion of flight training and transition to combat-type aircraft. One of the first graduates was Benjamin O. Davis, who later became the first African American general in the U.S. Air Force.

The Tuskegee Airmen

Introduction

The first Tuskegee graduates posted overseas were assigned to the 99th Fighter Squadron, which flew P-40 Warhawks and saw combat in North Africa, Sicily, and Italy in 1943 and 1944. Later Tuskegee graduates were assigned to the 332nd Fighter Group in the Fifteenth Air Force. In June 1944, this group became a long-range heavy bomber escort unit. Over the ensuing ten months, the 332nd, comprised exclusively of Tuskegee airmen, established the unprecedented record of flying more than 200 bomber missions without the loss of a single plane. During that period, the group received a Presidential Unit citation for a bomber escort mission to Berlin, which destroyed three German ME-262 jet fighters.

The 99th Fighter Squadron received two Presidential Unit citations for outstanding tactical air support. The combat successes of the Tuskegee graduates won them grudging respect from their white counterparts. At the same time, however, they had to endure racial bias and bigotry on a daily basis. At the end of the war, the Tuskegee airmen returned to the United States, only to face a continuation of these racist attitudes. Within the military, however, the record of the Tuskegee airmen helped to slowly break down the barriers of segregation. Many of the Tuskegee airmen chose to stay in the service after the war (Ambrose, 2001).

In contrast, many white veterans left their units, leading to a shortage of experienced air crews. However, the exemplary record of the Tuskegee airmen had convinced many in the armed forces that the time was right to desegregate. Consequently, in 1948, President Harry S. Truman enacted Executive Order 9981, which directed that there be equal treatment and opportunity in the U.S. Armed Forces.

Discussion and Analysis

The 332d Fighter Group and its four elements, the 99th, 100th, 301st, and 302d ...