Tuskegee Airmen Research Paper

Tuskegee Airmen “The skies buzzed with the sounds of gunfire and fighter jets flying around, We advanced through enemy lines, the Soviet Union was retreating as their fighter planes kept getting taken out. The Red Angels were the cause of this. They were our fighter planes, also known as the 99th Squadron. This was a special group of black men who performed as well as us whites, it was truly amazing.” That was what it was like for the Allied Powers during World War two whenever the 99th Squadron was around. They were the first black fighter pilots and they revolutionized the world. In the U.S. it was accepted that blacks were not as good as whites. They had to always listen to a white and they even got their own schools, Restaurants, and …show more content…
(Brooks 1) The first flying class started in July 1941 and finished training in March, 1942. five out of twelve completed it. (“Who”) Those five were Lemuel Custis, Charles DeBow, Mac Ross, George S. Roberts, and Benjamin O. Davis Jr. He became the squadrons commander. Many Black pilots were trained through 1941-1946. In July, 1942, the 99th squadron became activated. (Carter) Training for the 99th squadron started immediately, they used a P-40 aircraft and trained with it for twenty five hours. The Tuskegee Flying Institute had very strict rules and instructors. If you made one mistake you would be given a pink slip. three pink slips and you would be kicked out of the program. (Brooks 29) They then traveled to Eglin Field, Florida to practice more. (Carter) They had to build a whole new training field for blacks since blacks could not be with whites. Tuskegee Institute was chosen because of it being basically the perfect area. (Brooks 26) There were over three thousand men at the Tuskegee Airfield. They accepted blacks and whites, though more blacks came. (Brooks 33) Many new positions opened up other than pilots for blacks. This included Airplane mechanics, armament riggers, control tower operators, policemen, and administrative personnel. (Brooks 25) Eleanor Roosevelt visited the Tuskegee Institute in 1941. She was taken on a flight by Anderson and she was very impressed so she became a supported of blacks. Even though they were in the Army Air Corps, the blacks still had to deal with racism out of the base. They could not lash out either or the “Experiment” would be called a failure. (Brooks 30) The 100th, 301st, and 302nd squadrons were formed while the 99th waited for the call to battle. As a result of this the