Tuskegee Airmen WWII Fighter Pilots

This book honors the Tuskegee Airmen - African American pilots known as the "Red Tails," who never lost escorted bombers during World War II. These decorated pilots overcame the prejudicial conclusion of the 1925 War Department Study that "blacks cannot fly a complex airplane." Eleanor Roosevelt, who was flown by a black Tuskegee pilot, dispelled these myths along with their success during WWII. Two issues are clarified: 1) the Tuskegee Pilots never lost a bomber they escorted during WWII, and 2) the difference between the Tuskegee Experiment and the Tuskegee Pilot Experience. Chronicled are the events leading up to the Tuskegee pilot training and their achievements during and after the war, which culminated with each pilot receiving Honorary Doctorate degrees from Tuskegee University and being awarded the U.S. Congressional Gold Medal. This book also documents Tuskegee Airman, Ret. Lt. Col. Hiram E. Mann's progress from bellman at a hotel, to studying romance languages at Philander Smith College, to becoming a pilot in the 99th Pursuit Squadron and the 332nd Fighter Group. Lt. Col. Mann's personal diary accounts provide insights into the struggles of the pilots in the 1940s, the values that anchored their success, and their experiences fighting the enemy in Europe only to return to a segregated military and civilian life.