Tuskegee airmen
The Tuskegee airmen will always be the most influential air squadron during WWII. I think this because there were a lot racist people that did not want them to succeed, but they did more than just succeed. They became the first black Army Air Corps pilots. President Roosevelt arranged a meeting in September 1940 with three African-American leaders and members of the Army and Navy. During the meeting, the leaders stressed three points:
(1)equal chance for jobs in the defense industry,
(2)fair administration of the new draft law, and
(3)an opportunity for qualified blacks to learn to fly in defiled units.
Soon after, the War Department issued a policy directive stating that black men would be admitted into the military in numbers equal to civilian black population.
It was not until after the meeting in December 1940, that the Army Air Corps submitted a plan to experiment with establishing an all-black fighter squadron. Officially the plan was not implemented until July 19, 1941 when Major General Walter Weaver spoke at the Tuskegee Institute Campus. Thirteen black men were chosen became the first black pilot trainees. Most of the trainees were college graduates, including a police officer, an Army officer, a factory worker, and several who were fresh out of college.
Training was at Chanute Air Field in Illinois at the US Army Air Corps Technical Training School. A few miles from the Tuskegee Property, two air fields were also built for training. The two air fields were Moton Field and the Tuskegee Army Air Field(TAAF). The town of Tuskegee was very unfriendly toward blacks, especially the sheriff.
At the TAAF, an assortment of entertainment was offered. Musicians such as Louis Armstrong and Lena Horne, other stars like Joe Louis and the Camel Caravan Orchestra. The first trainer plane used by the squadron was the PT- 17 biplane. The instructor rode with the cadet during the first flight, even if the trainee did know how to fly...
(1)equal chance for jobs in the defense industry,
(2)fair administration of the new draft law, and
(3)an opportunity for qualified blacks to learn to fly in defiled units.
Soon after, the War Department issued a policy directive stating that black men would be admitted into the military in numbers equal to civilian black population.
It was not until after the meeting in December 1940, that the Army Air Corps submitted a plan to experiment with establishing an all-black fighter squadron. Officially the plan was not implemented until July 19, 1941 when Major General Walter Weaver spoke at the Tuskegee Institute Campus. Thirteen black men were chosen became the first black pilot trainees. Most of the trainees were college graduates, including a police officer, an Army officer, a factory worker, and several who were fresh out of college.
Training was at Chanute Air Field in Illinois at the US Army Air Corps Technical Training School. A few miles from the Tuskegee Property, two air fields were also built for training. The two air fields were Moton Field and the Tuskegee Army Air Field(TAAF). The town of Tuskegee was very unfriendly toward blacks, especially the sheriff.
At the TAAF, an assortment of entertainment was offered. Musicians such as Louis Armstrong and Lena Horne, other stars like Joe Louis and the Camel Caravan Orchestra. The first trainer plane used by the squadron was the PT- 17 biplane. The instructor rode with the cadet during the first flight, even if the trainee did know how to fly...