Wednesday, February 2, 2001
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Wednesday, February 2, 2001 |
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Famous black fighter
squadron targets By DAVE
HAMRICK
Once known as "angels" for their fierce protection of allied bombers during World War II, the African-American fighter squadron known as the Tuskegee Airmen are still working for good causes 56 years later. In a special Black History Month presentation, members of the 332nd fighter group will tell their stories at Flat Rock African Methodist Episcopal Church in Fayetteville Feb. 25. The church Young People's Division will sponsor the program as part of its monthly youth-led service. Squadron members will talk briefly about their experiences, according to Annie Atkins, wife of pastor the Rev. Charles Atkins Jr. Members of area churches are invited to the service at 10 a.m. The church is at 148 Old Chapel Lane, Fayetteville. Members of the famous squadron are credited with helping tear down the rigid walls of racial segregation that prevailed during WWII. Named for the segregated air field where they were trained, the Tuskegee Airmen flew the P-40, P039, P-47 and P-51 fighter planes, racking up a record 15,553 combat sorties and completing 1,578 missions with the 12th Tactical and the 15th Strategic Army Air corps. From bases in Italy, the 332nd destroyed enemy coastal surveillance stations, rail traffic and hundreds of military vehicles. Initially rejected as escorts by some of the white bomber crews, the black pilots soon developed a reputation for bravery. They stood out because they painted the tails of their planes red, and word spread among the bomber crews that the "Black Red Tail Angels" did their job. Soon, bomber crews flying missions over well-protected strategic German targets began to request the 332nd to escort them and protect them from attacking German fighter planes. Sixty-six of the black pilots were killed in combat, and 32 were shot down and became prisoners of war. They destroyed or damaged 409 German aircraft along with 950 units of enemy rail traffic and ground transportation units. They also are well-known for having sunk an enemy destroyer with nothing more than machine gun fire, and for never having lost a friendly bomber to enemy fighters. The success of the 332nd and other black units that followed in their footsteps is credited with helping bring about integration of the armed forces in 1949. After the war, members of the Tuskegee Airmen returned to civilian life and earned positions of leadership as businessmen, educators, doctors, lawyers and political leaders. Thirty years later, the Tuskegee Airmen Inc. was founded in Detroit, Mich., as a nonmilitary, nonprofit organization devoted to motivating and inspiring young people to become active in society and in the democratic process. For information on the group's visit to Flat Rock AME, phone 770-461-0283. |
