Ninety-Ninth Pursuit Squadron
(Tuskegee Airmen)
The Ninety-Ninth Pursuit Squadron (Tuskegee Airmen) Flew Its First Combat Mission, Strafing Enemy Positions On The Heavily Fortified Italian Island of Pantelleria.
On March 7, Tuskegee Institute Flight Graduated The First Class Flight School Cadets. Among Them, Benjamin O. Davis, Jr.
Due To A Rigid Pattern Of Racial Segregation That Prevailed In The United States During World War II,Tuskegee Institute And Also At An Isolated Training Complex Near Tuskegee, Alabama.
Under The Command Of Then Colonel Benjamin O. Davis, 450 Black Fighter Pilots Fought In The Aerial War Over North Africa, Sicily And Europe --- Flying In Succession, P-40, P-39, P-47 And P-51 Type Aircraft. The Men Flew 15,553 Sorties And Completed 1,578 Missions With The 12th Tactical And 15th U.S. Army Air Force.
The 99th Fighter Squadron, Were Called The "Schwartze Vogelmenshen" (Black Birdmen) By The Germans Who Both Feared And Respected Them. White American Bomber Crews Referred To Them As "The Black Redtail Angels" Because of The Identifying Red Paint On The Aircraft Tail Assemblies And Because Of Their Reputation For Not Losing Bombers To Enemy Fighters As They Provided Fighter Escort On Bombing Missions Over Targets In Europe.
Davis Became The First Black General In The United States Air Force, While The Tuskegee Airmen Have Rightfully Been One Of The Most Celebrated Groups In Military History.
"In Order For Black History To Live, We Must Continue To Breathe Life Into It." -- Hubert Gaddy, Jr. Approximately 992 Aviators Were Trained At The
