How They Soared Above Adversity
Some of the most legendary names in aviation are also civil rights pioneers, daring to soar above prejudice on the ground by breaking barriers in the sky.
You likely know the Tuskegee Airmen as the first African American pilots in the U.S. military. The legendary group has been portrayed in numerous films, plays, art, action figures and books, but much of their experience hasn’t permeated into popular culture.
Here are eight things you may not know about the Tuskegee Airmen, particularly about the individual members and their contributions to aviation and American society.
1. The Tuskegee Airmen were part of “the Tuskegee experience.”
The “Tuskegee experience” refers to the program that taught African Americans to fly and maintain sophisticated combat aircraft. It shouldn’t be confused with the Tuskegee experiment, a notorious medical research study that occurred from 1932 to 1972, where hundreds of poor Black men in Alabama were given placebos instead of proper treatment for syphilis.
Following World War I (WWI), the Tuskegee experience was a response to more than two decades of advocacy for Black military aviators led by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and prominent civil rights leaders.
2. The Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) predecessor organization played a key role in training the Tuskegee Airmen.
On June 27, 1939, President Roosevelt signed the Civilian Pilot Training Act into law. The law authorized the Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) to train civilian pilots through educational institutions. Then-Representative Everett M. Dirksen (R-IL) inserted a provision into the act that stated “none of the benefits of training or programs shall be denied on account of race, creed, or color.” Though training remained mostly segregated, instruction for Black students began in 1939 at six schools:
- West Virginia State College for Negroes;
- Howard University in Washington, DC;
- Tuskegee Institute in Alabama;
- Hampton Institute in Virginia;
- Delaware State College for Colored Students; and
- North Carolina Agricultural and Technical College.
Some northern colleges accepted Black students into the program. Because of the success rate of its primary aviation instruction, the CAA only approved Tuskegee for secondary instruction.
The Civilian Pilot Training Program indisputably proved that Black airmen could fly as well as any other pilot. That program’s success, as well as pressure from civil rights organizations and the African American press, led the U.S. Army Air Corps to create its first Black pursuit squadron. That unit, created in January 1941, used Tuskegee Institute as its training base.
On December 12, 1941, just days after the United States entered World War II, President Roosevelt signed Executive Order 8974 (PDF), which transformed the Civilian Pilot Training Program into a wartime program. It became “exclusively devoted to the procurement and training of men for ultimate service as military pilots, or for correlated non-military activities.” The CAA announced that “it had been authorized by the Army to train Negroes as noncombat pilots . . . Cadets will be given a 32 weeks course at Tuskegee Institute in Alabama and at Coffey School of Aeronautics, Oak Lawn, Ill.”
Under enormous pressure, the Tuskegee Airmen completed intense aeronautical training, endured the stresses of wartime combat and prevailed over discrimination and racism. They understood that their success or failure would ultimately determine whether African Americans would serve alongside others in the armed forces. In total, 992 pilots were trained at Tuskegee Army Airfield, and 335 pilots were deployed overseas. Eighty-four lost their lives, including 68 in action, and 32 were captured as prisoners of war. Their courage in WWII combat significantly contributed to the U.S. military’s desegregation. On November 6, 1998, President Clinton approved a public law to establish the Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site at Moton Field in Tuskegee, Alabama, to commemorate the heroic actions of the Tuskegee Airmen during WWII.
3. The Tuskegee Airmen weren’t exclusively African American.
One misconception is that all of the servicemen who trained at Tuskegee Institute were African American. In actuality, other people of color also received training at the Institute, including Asians, Hispanics/Latinos, Native Americans and foreign nationals.
For example, the group included six Haitians, most of them from the Haitian Air Force. Raymond Cassagnol, Alix Pasquet and Philippe Célestin appeared in the popular Black newspaper The Afro American in April 1943. Unfortunately, Célestin was eliminated during the upper basic stage of training. Pasquet fell ill during training and didn’t graduate with Cassagnol and other servicemen but completed training in August 1943. Three more Haitians were recruited after Cassagnol’s graduation: Ludovic Audant, Nicolas Pelissier and Eberle Guilbaud. In 2009, Cassagnol, as the only surviving Haitian Tuskegee Airmen, was a special guest at former President Barack Obama’s first inauguration.
Major Frederick Oliver “Blue Eagle” Wilson, a Documented Original Tuskegee Airman, was as proud of his Native American heritage as he was to be a keeper of the Airmen’s legacy. Despite bittersweet memories, he embraced his vital role in American history and sought to share that history with younger generations.
4. Military personnel, in addition to pilots, made up the Tuskegee Airmen.
The term “Tuskegee Airmen” includes the more than 14,000 bombardiers, instructors, navigators, maintenance and administrative staff that provided critical support to pilots. They trained not only in Tuskegee, Alabama, but also in the North (New Jersey, New York), other Southern states (Georgia, Mississippi, Texas) and the Midwest (Illinois, Wisconsin). Similar to the pilots, many of them experienced the perils of war as well as the indignities of serving in a segregated military.
The notable achievements of the pilots and their military personnel blazed the path to integration for the U.S. Armed Forces. Despite the overwhelming pressures and prejudice they faced, the Airmen earned a reputation for being highly respected pilots and professionals. In 2007, the Tuskegee Airmen, as a collective group of 300, received the Congressional Gold Medal — the highest civilian award presented by Congress.
5. Women were Tuskegee Airmen, too; they played pivotal roles as military support personnel and military spouses.
Hemmons Carter was a member of the first graduating class of Tuskegee’s Civilian Pilot Training Program and earned her private pilot’s license in 1941; she was the first Black woman in Alabama to earn this license. During this time, she met her husband Herbert Carter who served as a fighter pilot and squadron maintenance chief before rising to the rank of lieutenant colonel. They were married for 69 years until her passing. At the Tuskegee Army Air Field, Mildred Hemmons Carter bulldozed trees off the site of airstrips to clear the way for airmen, performed administrative duties and rigged parachutes throughout the war. In spite of her qualifications, she was initially rejected when she applied to be a Women Airforce Service Pilot (WASP) because of her race, but 70 years after earning her license, she was designated as a WASP. She was also a Designated Original Tuskegee Airman.
Irma Dryden is another example of a Tuskegee nurse and spouse of an airman. She worked in the Tuskegee air base’s hospital and met Charles “A-Train” Dryden during her first day on base. He was in the second class of Black pilots to complete the Army Air Corps training program and was commissioned as a second lieutenant in 1942. Irma and Charles Dryden were married for 32 years before divorcing. Being a Documented Original Tuskegee Airman ranks high among Irma Dryden’s accomplishments. As a nurse, she provided not only medical treatment but also a listening ear and moral support for young pilots. She remains an active member of Tuskegee Airmen Inc., which is a nonprofit organization that preserves and promotes the group’s legacy.
In their various roles, African American women added another dimension of capability, classiness, compassion, commitment, courage, counsel and strength to the Tuskegee experience.
6. The Tuskegee Airmen had support from famous figures in the African American community.
Lena Horne — the African American singer, dancer and actress — entertained U.S. troops during WWII. Based on her popularity among service members, she performed live on several United Service Organizations tours. However, she eventually quit the tours based on the treatment of Black soldiers, refusing to perform for segregated audiences or groups where German prisoners of war were seated in front of Black servicemen. Instead, she paid out of pocket to perform for soldiers in the West and South; she also visited the Tuskegee training base in Alabama multiple times.
Before his journey to becoming the first African American Supreme Court justice, Thurgood Marshall defended some of the Tuskegee bomber trainees. As a young lawyer, he represented 100 Black officers of the 477th Bombardment Group (formed in 1944) who were jailed after a confrontation in Indiana that occurred when they entered an all-white officers’ club. One of the men was later convicted and fined for violent conduct, but a majority were released. While Marshall offered his representation in this instance, overall he did not champion having a segregated unit for Black pilots. As the lead NAACP attorney, Marshall aligned with the Association’s advocacy for full integration of the U.S. military. While he was unsuccessful in preventing the Tuskegee experience, Thurgood Marshall successfully argued and won other legal battles against discrimination of Blacks in housing, education, and voting.
7. Though their war record wasn’t perfect, the Tuskegee Airmen had one of the best records among American fighter units.
In 1945, the Chicago Defender, a newspaper for the African American community, published an article claiming that the Tuskegee Airmen never lost any of the bombers they escorted to enemy aircraft. This myth endured to the 21st century when subsequent research of bomber losses, flight logs and mission reports revealed that 27 bombers escorted by the 332nd fighter group had been shot down. (The 332nd Pursuit Group is the source of the nickname “Red Tails,” based on the distinctive red markings on the group’s aircraft for easy recognition.) Yet, the average number of bombers lost by other escort groups of the Fifteenth Air Force was 46 — nearly double the loss rate of the bombers protected by the Tuskegee Airmen. In comparison, the Airmen lost significantly fewer bombers on their escort missions than other fighter units at the time.
The Air Force Historical Research Agency lists the following as highlights from the Tuskegee Airmen’s impressive records:
- 1,500+ missions flown;
- 1,378 combat missions flown;
- 1,031 air medals awarded;
- 112 enemy aircraft shot down;
- 3 German jets shot down;
- 96 Distinguished Flying Crosses awarded; and
- 700 other awards given (including Legions of Merit, Silver/Bronze Stars, Purple Hearts, the Croix de Guerre, and the Red Star of Yugoslavia).
8. Many of the Tuskegee Airmen had successful careers after World War II.
To prove their worthiness to serve their country in war times, many Tuskegee Airmen juggled or postponed careers, education and marriage. Later, in spite of the racism they experienced even after WWII, many of the Airmen managed to find fulfillment in nurturing families, completing their education and pursuing social justice. A number enjoyed distinguished careers as military officers, authors, congressional representatives, doctors, lawyers, teachers and transit workers. In fact, after WWII, approximately 29 Tuskegee Airmen came to work for the CAA/FAA and the Department of Transportation.
Some of the most popular Airmen have had stellar military careers. Benjamin Davis Jr. (1912–2002), a West Point graduate and son of Benjamin Davis who was the first Black general in the U.S. military, was a member of the first graduating class of the Tuskegee flight training program in 1942. Davis Jr. served as commander of the 99th Fighter Squadron and the 332nd Fighter Group. He became the first African American general in the U.S. Air Force and was advanced to a four-star general in 1998. He later served as Assistant Secretary of Transportation for Environment, Safety and Consumer Affairs at the Department of Transportation, a position which also oversaw security. George Spencer “Spanky” Roberts (1918–1984), also a member of the first graduating class, became the first African American commander of an integrated Air Force unit; he later retired as a colonel. Daniel “Chappie” James Jr. (1920–1978) served as a civilian instructor pilot at Tuskegee Institute during WWII then led flights and flew combat missions in the Korean and Vietnam Wars; he became the nation’s first Black four-star general in 1975.
In spite of their outstanding military service and wartime record, the Tuskegee Airmen experienced several crucial years where the fullness of their contributions weren’t recognized due to racism and discrimination. Those who fought overseas in WWII stepped back into segregation the moment they returned to American soil, and the Airmen who supported the war efforts at home were forced to face and resist bigotry and hatred in their surrounding communities. While presenting a patriotic front to the world, the Tuskegee Airmen endured institutional and individual racism from their countrymen that resulted in decades of myths, misinformation and misconceptions about the historic group.
Thankfully, in modern times, we’ve seen more recognition of the Airmen’s accomplishments and more efforts to dispel rumors and inaccurate information about them. Also, advanced technology has granted us greater access to information about the service, sacrifices, struggles and successes of these diverse aviation legends. Now, with confidence, we can credit the men and women of the Tuskegee Airmen for collectively breaking down barriers to equality in the military and society in addition to proving as individuals that people of any color or gender can soar above adversity based on bravery, perseverance, intelligence and talent.
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