The Tuskegee Airmen were essential to the complete integration of the United States armed forces. Although the Tuskegee Airmen were not the first black service members to distinguishably serve their country, they were able to do so during a time of progression in the black community and turmoil in the world. The Tuskegee Airmen represented the diverse and deeply patriotic African American population on an international front.
After World War I, several studies were conducted, in reference to the role that African Americans played in the military. The results were biases and based in prejudice and stereotypes of the past. “The study concluded that black men were cowards, poor technicians and fighters, lacking initiative and resourcefulness. The study also stated that the Negro was a subspecies of the human population.” The study also reported that the average brain of a black man only weighed thirty-five ounces compared to the forty-five ounces of an average white man. These test results provided more than enough evidence for military leaders that the military need to continue its practice of segregation.
With World War II quickly advancing on the heels of America, the War College was commissioned to do another study into the role of blacks in the military. This study did not differ very much from the previous report, but it did suggest that more blacks be allowed to join the Army. Despite the need for more soldiers, this did not change the positions that blacks were given and they were still not allowed to join the Army Air Corps. In September of 1938, it was clear that the United States that it would no longer be able to remain neutral in the war in Europe. President Franklin D. Roosevelt began to prepare America’s military for its inevitable involvement in the war. In 1939, Congress passed Public Law 18 that authorized the civilian schools to train military pilots and the Civilian Pilot Training Act was signed; which authorized seven million dollars per year to train civilian pilots until July1, 1944. Initially Public Law 18 did not apply to blacks or black schools, but at the last minute, Senator Harry Schwartz added an amendment that allowed blacks to be part of the Civilian Training Program. The amendment allowed the War Department to provide equipment to at least two black schools approved by the Civil Aeronautics Authority.
In June of 1939, Congress authorized the Civil Aeronautics Authority to sanction the Civilian Pilot Program, which included Black colleges, and two privately owned black civilian flight schools. The Tuskegee Institute was one of the five black colleges that participated in the Civilian Pilot Program. The first training course at Tuskegee Institute began December 1939; the first class consisted of twenty students. All students had to meet the following requirements; they had to be American citizens, eighteen years of age, enrolled full-time at Tuskegee, have a student pilot’s certificate and have parental consent. At the start of 1940 their were only 125 licensed black aviators, of which eighty-two still held their fliers license. The succes of the Civilian Pilot program was evident in the black community, by the substantial increasce in the number of licensed black aviators; from 125 to 231 at the end of 1940 .
The presidential elections of 1940 would help to shine a light on the segregation of the military and to break ground for the introduction of blacks in the Army Air Corps. Wendell Willkie; Republican presidential candidate, promised that if elected, he would end segregation in the military. Willkie’s promise prompted President Roosevelt to call for a meeting of the minds to address the discrimination of blacks in the military. The attendees were the Secretary of the Navy, Assistant Secretary, Philip Randolph (president of Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters), T. Arnold Hill (National Youth Administration) and Walter White (Secretary of the NAACP). During the conference White, Randolph, and Hill presented steps detailing the integration of blacks into all phase of the armed forces. In return the War Department reinforced the use of segregation, but did agree to allow blacks to join the Army Air Corps. In January 1941 the War Department officially announced to the public that African Americans would be permitted to serve as pilots in the Army Air Corps . In the spring of 1941 the first all black squadron was formed, the 99th Pursuit Squadron which “would consist of thirty-three pilots and a ground crew of two hundred and fifty men” .
As soon as the decision to allow blacks to enlist in the Air Corp was made public the Army instituted the Army General Classification Test (AGCT), which measured the soldiers learning abilities and allowed the army to classify each recruit by their learning abilities. Reluctant to adhere to the War Departments decision to establish an all Negro Air squadron, the Army Air Corps filled the Negro aviation squadrons with soldiers with low AGCT scores and assigned them to traditional menial labor, such as housekeeping, maintenance and transport units. Soldiers who did score high on the AGCT exam were either shuffled around to undesirable branches of the army or subjected to menial labor and were not permitted to take the Army Air Corp technical school entrance exam. Out of the 2500 quota 278 soldiers successfully completed both exams and were allowed to enter the non-flying technical training for the 99th Pursuit Squadron .
The Army Air Corps finally selected thirty-five black men for pilot training in June 1941. Of the thirty-five men selected only thirteen of the meet the eligibility and physical requirements. The thirteen cadets of the 99th Pursuit Squadron started the first pilot training course at Tuskegee Institute on July 19, 1941. In March 1942 only five of the original thirteen cadets successfully graduated from the pilots training course. During 1942 thirty-three more students received their wings, which brought the 99th Pursuit Squadron up to capacity with enough trained pilots, ground, administrative and medical crews to be deployed into combat.
The Japanese invasion of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 propelled the United States into World War II. On December 9, 1941 President Roosevelt made an official declaration of war against Japan and the Axis powers. The 99th Pursuit Squadron did not officially join the fight until April 1, 1943, the Fighter Squadron received orders for Oued N’ja, Morocco. After a month of combat training in Oude N’ja, the 99th was transferred to Fardjouna on the Cape Bon Peninsula in Tunisia, where they got their first chance to go into combat. The 99th had their first actual combat experience while attached to the 33rd Fighter Group on the morning of June 9, 1943. The 99th was assigned to escort twelve A-20 Havoc attack bombers to and from Pantelleria, Italy with eight other fighters of the 33rd Fighter Group. While returning home from their mission the pilots were attacked by a group of German Me-109s. The five pilots of the 99th broke ranks with the other pilots of the 33rd and engaged the German Me-109s in a dogfight. The 99th successfully drove away the German aircraft without suffering any loss or damage . The twenty-five men of the 99th Pursuit Squadron flew over 800 successful missions from June to September of 1943, only suffering 3 fatalities; two non-combat related .
The 99th represented more than a successful experiment but the success of a race and their struggles at home. The 99th were the face of the African American efforts on the war front, led by Col Benjamin Davis, who stood in defense of the 99th, and the entire Tuskegee Airmen experiment came under attack by Col. William Momyer; commander of the 33rd Fighter Group, when he stated that in an official report of on the effectiveness of the 99th, that they were “not of the fighting caliber of any squadron…. to display any aggressiveness and desire for combat that are necessary to a first class fighting organization.” Although there were attempts made by; Col.William Momyer and others to discredit the skills and success of the 99th, they continued to perform above and beyond the call of duty.
In September 1943 the Col. Davis was resigned to Selfridge Field Michigan to command the 332nd Fighter Group, which consisted of three other fighter squadrons; the 100th, 301st and 302nd and would eventually absorb the 99th. From the time that the Tuskegee Airmen entered World War II until its completion they courageously served their country. The 99th Squadron was set apart itself from their white counterparts by being awarded two Presidential Citations for their distinguished aerial support and combat while serving under the 12th Air Force in Italy. The 332nd flew over twenty-one hundred sorties; destroying one hundred eleven German aircraft in aerial combat and one hundred and fifty grounded aircraft. The 332nd Fighter Group was also decorated with a Presidential Citation for the longest successful bomber escort mission. Another claim to fame of the 332nd was a virtually perfect record of bomber escorts, even though the exact number of bomber lost to enemy fire is unknown, it is said to be far less than that than of white escort crews during WWII .
The unconditional surrender of all German forces was May 7, 1945, which meant that it was time for the men of the 332nd to return home. The men of the 332nd were forced to face the harsh reality of the state of the nation, especially those who returned to the south. The violence and the unfair and segregated treatment of black veterans prompted the Negro civil right organization and other community groups to form the National Emergency Committee Against Mob Violence. The committee was formed in an attempt to reduce the amount of white mob violence and the decrease the growing number of white hate groups. The founding of the committee lead to presidential appointed investigate into the “violation of civil liberties of Americans…that would study the acts of violence against all minorities and recommend a plan for corrective action. The results of the investigation were complete in October 1947. The reported included these suggestions to secure civil rights “Establishing a permanent Commission on Civil Rights, a joint Congressional Committee on Civil Rights, and a Civil Rights Division in the Justice Department; Strengthening existing civil rights statutes; Providing federal protection against lynching; Establishing a Fair Employment Practices Commission to prevent unfair discrimination in employment; Protecting the right to vote; and Ending all forms of discrimination and segregation based on color, race, or creed, in the Military.” The following year President Truman issued two executive orders; Executive order 9980, to eliminate discrimination in federal civil service and 9981, to attempt to eliminate discrimination in the military. In January 1949 President Truman made his official announcement to enforce the Executive order 9981 to the secretaries of each branch of the armed forces and most importantly the chief commander of the Air Force.
Executive orders 9980 and 9981 were tremendous turning points for African Americans, in time of incredible struggle. The desegregation of the armed forces gave the people hope for change and eventual equality in the future. The success of the Tuskegee flight experiment and training of the segregated 99th Fighter Squadron and the 332nd Fighter Group proved to the War Department that, if given the opportunity, skilled African Americans, could perform as well as whites with the same skill level and education.

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