Benjamin O. Davis Jr
Pilot, Commander and Our First Black US Air Force General
Frederick
Douglas, Martin Luther King Jr., and Harriet Tubman may be the most often
mentioned Black History heroes. However,
there are many more whose names most people might not recognize. One of these heroes is Benjamin O. Davis Jr.
As
the first African-American US Air Force General Benjamin O.
Davis Jr is probably most well known as the commander of the World War II Tuskegee Airmen. General Davis grew up fully aware of racial inequality
through his father's struggles as one of the only two African-American combat
officers in the army. Due to his race,
he was unable to advance. Thus, young
Davis vowed to change segregation and racial inequality and was in a big part
responsible for many of the changes we see today.
Even though graduating near the top
of his class at West Point, he was rejected, minimalized, and not allowed to fly or
to advance. Impending war and politics
opened a tiny window of opportunity. For
appearances, a black commander was needed for the Air Corps first black unit.
As a West Point graduate, Davis was the perfect choice and began flight school
in Tuskegee
AAF.
He and his men of the 99th Fighter
Squadron fought bravely without the most modern planes available at the time
and with few men for rotations. Not only did they
relentlessly fight the enemy, but were also at war with those who would shut their
unit down as well. Through a rousing
testimony to a committee charged with determining their fate, Davis ensured not
only would the 99th survive, but would also receive better planes. With these better planes, they, now combined
with the 332d, became escorts for Air Force bombers. Along with their many incredible achievements,
during their 200 escort missions they never lost a bomber to an enemy fighter.
In
1949,
the achievements of Davis and the Tuskegee Airmen were pivotal in the argument
of why integration would strengthen the Air Force. In the many years that followed, Davis
fought the bigotry in Alabama to attend the Air War College, graduated and
began working at the Pentagon. In many of his future positions, he
supervised thousands of white men who dutifully followed him. A crowning accomplishment was creating a
defensive air force -- from scratch -- in Taipei, Taiwan to protect against an
attack from Communist China. Before he
retired in 1970, he continued to make more advances and more stars. Thus, Davis had achieved his mission to end
segregation in the military.
Benjamin O. Davis Jr., an aviation pioneer, is one of the most famous Tuskegee
Airmen of World War II.
PD-USGOV-MILITARY-AIR
FORCE.
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