The Tuskegee Airmen In the first half of the twentieth century, segregation of white and Black people was rampant in America, and the ugly threads of racism accompanied this custom. Thus, when tensions began mounting in the late 1930s in anticipation of World War II, Black men found themselves barred from most military positions, especially those that involved flying planes.
According to a 1925 War Department report, Black men were believed to be incapable of flying. Thankfully, two important events gave African Americans a chance to prove otherwise. In 1939, the Civilian Aviation Authority (CAA) implemented the Civilian Pilot Training Program (CPTP). In the interest of national defense, this program authorized 20,000 college students a year to begin flight training. The second crucial event was the passing of Public Law 18, which allowed aviation training equipment to be lent to several schools including the historically Black Tuskegee Institute.
There was still much resistance to the idea of allowing African Americans to fly, but at a Congressional hearing in June of 1939, $1 million of the $8 million set aside for expanding military training of pilots be specifically dedicated to Black pilots. Thus, the Tuskegee Institute began training pilots through the CPTP in December 1939.
Students of the program built the first airport at Tuskegee in 1940, and 100% of the first class passed the CAA written exam. After proving their determination, enthusiasm, and desire, Tuskegee was authorized to begin a secondary training course. However, they needed a new airport, and money was scarce. Fortunately, First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt attended the annual fund meeting in 1941, and requested to be taken up on a flight. The pilot, Alfred “Chief” Anderson, impressed Roosevelt, who secured a donation of $175,000 from the Rosenwald Fund.
The men of Tuskegee still encountered racism and discrimination at the hands of the War Department until President Roosevelt stepped in. He revised the Army policy in October of 1940 to create a “separate, but equal” Army. One of his revisions required the training of Black pilots, mechanics and technical specialists. Tuskegee, with its established Civilian Pilot Training Program was a natural choice for a military operation. Thus, on July 19, 1941, the Tuskegee Army Air Field officially opened to begin military pilot training of Black cadets.
The first class, 42-C, contained 12 cadets and 1 officer. Captain Benjamin O. Davis, Jr. was a graduate of West Point Academy and came to Tuskegee from his station in Fort Riley, Kansas. The training program had three parts: a civilian instructed session, basic military training, and then advanced military training. The first men to move through the Tuskegee Experiment formed the 99th Fighter Squadron and left for overseas combat in April of 1943. Their first combat mission came on June 2, 1943, over the Mediterranean Sea. More squadrons of Tuskegee Airmen followed the 99th overseas and participated in strafing, dive bombing, and escorting heavy bombers on their missions. A total of 994 African American men earned their wings at Tuskegee during the war years of 1941-1946. Four hundred and fifty of those men saw active duty. They are credited with having shot down 112 Luftwaffe aircraft, sinking an Italian destroyer, and demolishing 950 fuel dumps, trucks, and trains. All together the Tuskegee Airmen were involved in over 15,000 combat sorties. As their record and reputation suggests, the Tuskegee Airmen overcame the obstacles of racism, discrimination, and segregation in order to prove they were more than capable to fight for their country.
The Flying Cadet Program When African American men wanted to fly for the Army, they were sent to Tuskegee. This was the most logical place since Tuskegee had already implemented a Civilian Pilot Training Program as well as their own air field, Moton Field. The airstrip was built as a result of the Rosenwald Fund donation. The Army capitalized on this and added the Tuskegee Army Air Field.
Once the Black cadets had undergone their physical exams and their psychomotor tests, they were cleared to begin their flight training. They began a nine week initiation course taught by civilian instructors at Moton Field. During this time, the men would log about 60 hours of flying time as well as undergo a brutal hazing process.
After completion of the primary course, the cadets moved on to the Tuskegee Army Air Field for their basic military training. This second phase would make them into military fighter pilots. At this stage, the cadets would log 70 hours of flight time. If and when they completed the basic training, the men would move on to advanced training. All of the Tuskegee cadets trained for single engine planes since that was all Tuskegee had. They flew North American AT-6s, and logged 70 more hours of flying. The focus of this level of training was on skills such as aerial gunnery and combat maneuvers.
Upon completion of this advanced instruction, the cadets were awarded their pilot wings and appointed either a Flight Officer or a 2nd Lieutenant. In the early years of the war, one frustrating indication of discrimination against the Tuskegee Airmen was that the transition from graduation to actual fighting took about a year compared to the two months for white pilots. This gap was shortened as the war progressed.
As with all military training, not all men successfully advanced from course to course. About 40% of Tuskegee’s cadets would wash out due to accidents, academic failures, or physical problems. Before Pearl Harbor in December of 1941, African American wash outs were simply sent home. However, after the attack, they were kept and appointed privates. Eventually in 1943, these men were given the opportunity to train as navigators or bombardiers.
Ulysses “Rip” Gooch was born on September 13, 1923 in Tennessee. His grandparents were freed slaves, and he grew up with his aunt and uncle who were sharecroppers. During his last year of high school in Ripley, Tennessee, Rip heard about the military base in Tuskegee, Alabama that was dedicated to training African American men to fly. Since Rip had always dreamed of flying planes, he hitchhiked to Tuskegee to sign up. Once there he flew with “Chief” Anderson, but discovered he would have to go home and take the proper tests.
In February of 1943, Rip joined the Army with the intention of learning to fly, but in 1944 he was transferred to the infantry. He was sent to Italy to be an infantry replacement; however, the war in Europe ended before he saw any action. As a consequence, he was sent to the Pacific as part of a mission that would serve as plan B if the atomic bombs failed. Gooch’s ultimate destination turned out to be the Philippines, and after serving there, he was discharged in March of 1946.
Using money from the GI Bill, Gooch attended Tennessee A&I University as well as earned his commercial pilot’s license and flight instructor license. He took a job with Boeing in 1951 that brought him to Wichita. He became involved with the National Aviation Youth program as well as the Civil Air Patrol. He also formed a flying club in the mid-1950s. In 1959, Gooch began a new phase of his life when he opened his own aviation company. This business venture lasted 16 years. He continued to work in the aviation field serving as a freelance instructor, a charter pilot, an aviation consultant, and a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) pilot examiner. He has logged over 20,000 hours of flying time. He also is a member of the Black Pilots of America as well as the Black Army Aviators.
Starting in the 1970s, Gooch became more active in civil service. He served on the National League of Cities, the Community and Economic Development Committee as well as the State Civil Rights Commission. In 1989, he was elected to Wichita’s City Council. He also served as Vice-Mayor of Wichita from 1990-91. These positions ultimately led to his election to the Kansas State Senate in 1993 where he served for 11 years. Mr. Gooch passed away in 2021 at the age of 98.
Donald Jackson was born on August 17, 1926 in Kansas City, Kansas. He and his older sister spent part of their childhood in Prairie View, Texas, until their mother moved them back to Kansas City. One of his interests and hobbies was flying model airplanes made of balsa wood. He acted on that hobby at the age of 17 when he volunteered for the Civil Air Patrol.
Upon turning 18 in 1944 and taking the required examinations, Donald signed up for the Army Air Force. He began his basic training in Fort Lauderdale and was then sent to Tuskegee, Alabama, to become a military pilot. When he arrived at the Tuskegee Institute, he was told not to go out to the town. The military base could not provide protection for the African Americans beyond the base. Consequently, Jackson never left the base, or any other base at which he was stationed, because he feared a possible altercation with local populations. In describing race relations of the time, Jackson has said, “We were looked down upon and treated as if African Americans had rabies.”
Nevertheless, the men at the Tuskegee Institute enjoyed a close camaraderie. They were in a school environment, learning everything they needed to know about planes, flying, and combat. Donald’s class began with 70 cadets, but by his graduation in 1945, only 21 remained. Donald was one of the last cadets to receive his wings at Tuskegee as he graduated right after the war was concluded both in Europe and in the Pacific. He had trained to be a B-25 medium bomber pilot, which meant he would probably have been sent to the Pacific. However, he was discharged in October of 1946 under the Excess Officer Act.
Given the opportunity to pursue higher education, Jackson chose to attend Kansas State University in 1946 and become a veterinarian. After graduating, he moved to Wichita and worked under a veterinarian for 5 years. He then opened his own practice and continued practicing until his retirement in 2000.
Colonel George Boyd was born on June 23, 1926, in Leonia, New Jersey. At the beginning of World War II, Col. Boyd was just 15 years old and in high school. He remembers listening to President Roosevelt declaring the United States at war and knowing that he would eventually be in the military. Thus, when a friend came home from Tuskegee and suggested Boyd go there, he dropped out of high school and was off on his Tuskegee adventure. In 1943 when he enlisted in the reserved corps and moved directly into the Army Air Corp.
Tuskegee, Alabama, was a strikingly different environment for a northerner like Boyd. The segregation that ruled African Americans’ lives was very evident in the South, and he did not go into downtown unless it was absolutely necessary. Boyd graduated with cadet class 45-G, and eventually became the sergeant-major of the Tuskegee base. Toward the close of the war he was stationed in Guam, where he wrote for the military newspaper, Stars and Stripes.
His next step was to apply for officer candidate school in San Antonio, Texas. Graduating as a 2nd Lieutenant, he became the adjutant of the 100th fighter squadron. During his military career, Boyd not only went to several military schools; but, he also made good use of his off-duty time by earning his undergraduate, masters, and doctorate degrees from various universities. The year 1950 was a big year for Boyd as he got married and earned his wings as a radar intercept officer. During the Korea conflict, he was sent to Greenland with the 318th fighter squadron to protect the refuel tanks housed there. He also saw active duty during Vietnam. Boyd retired from the Air Force in 1971 in Wichita, Kansas.
Since that time Boyd has served in a number of different positions. In the late 1970s he worked for Boeing Aircraft Company. Then, from 1981 until 1991, he served as the Kansas Director of Aviation. In 1989, he helped to create the International Pilot Training Program at the Salina campus of Kansas State University. Governor Joan Finney awarded Boyd the Governor’s Aviation Honor Award in 1994. Finally, in 2000, he was promoted to colonel and appointed commander of the Kansas Civil Air Patrol. Boyd also received a great honor in being invited to speak at the 125th anniversary of Tuskegee University where he was awarded an honorary PhD for his service in WWII.