October 5, 2005
Contact: Jeff Schrade (202)224-9093

(Washington, DC) In 1941, several months before the Japanese attacked the United States at Pearl Harbor, the U.S. Army Air Force began a program to train black Americans as military pilots near Tuskegee, Alabama.  On Tuesday the United States Senate unanimously passed legislation (S. 392) authorizing President Bush to award the Congressional Gold Medal to the Tuskegee Airmen in honor of their unique military record.

As an escort fighter wing during World War II, they never lost a bomber to enemy fighters.

"This is a much deserved award and I am happy for those who will receive this important recognition on behalf of a grateful nation. The successes of the Tuskgee Airmen helped win the war and helped breakdown racial stereotypes," said Sen. Larry Craig, Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs. "I commend Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI) for introducing this legislation."

German pilots, who both feared and respected them, called the Tuskegee Airmen the "Schwartze Vogelmenshen'" (Black Birdmen). White American bomber crews referred to them as "Redtailed Angels" because of the bright red painted on the tail assemblies and because of their reputation for not losing bombers to enemy fighters.

During World War II, Tuskegee Airmen were credited with destroying 261 aircraft, damaging 148 aircraft, flying 15,553 combat sorties and 1,578 missions over Italy and North Africa. They destroyed or damaged over 950 units of ground transportation and escorted more than 200 bombing missions.

The award the Airmen may receive will be unique since each Congressional Gold Medal of Honor is created by the United States Mint for each specific recipient, or group of recipients, so there is no standard design. The award is a completely separate decoration from the Medal of Honor, which is the rarest recognition the nation bestows for extreme bravery in combat.

The Continental Congress first authorized the commissioning of Congressional Gold Medals during the Revolutionary War, and the first recipient was General George Washington. Over the past two centuries, Congress has presented the award to those who participated in other wars and who otherwise contributed to society. Recipients include Ulysses S. Grant, John Wayne, Bob Hope, Pope John Paul II, Winston Churchill, and the Navajo Code Talkers of World War II.

If the Senate's vote is ratified by the House of Representatives, the Tuskegee Airmen, with nearly 1,000 members, will be the largest group to ever receive the award.

Links:

American Visionaries ? Tuskegee Airmen

http://www.cr.nps.gov/museum/exhibits/tuskegee/airoverview.htm

National Museum of the United States Air Force ? Tuskegee Airmen

http://www.wpafb.af.mil/museum/history/prewwii/ta.htm

Tuskegee Airmen National Park

http://www.nps.gov/tuai/

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