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Scott deployers have link to Tuskegee Airmen

  • Published
  • By 375th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
  • 375th AMW
SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. --  The Tuskegee Airmen, made famous as the first African American aviators during World War II and for never losing a single bomber as fighter escorts, have been the focus of recent attention both on the home front, as well as on the front lines of battle.

Retired Tech. Sgt. George Watson, an Airman who was assigned as a maintainer with the legendary 332nd Fighter Group, came to Scott as the guest speaker for the annual African American Heritage luncheon Feb. 23.

He spoke to personnel here about his time protecting aircraft in Capodichino, Italy, one of the launching bases for several critical missions during 1945. The 332nd FG would eventually earn a distinguished unit citation for a mission when the group escorted B-17s during a raid on a tank factory at Berlin. The pilots of that unit fought interceptors that attacked the formation, and they strafed transportation facilities while flying back to their base in Italy. They were the first fighter group to shoot down three German Me-262 fighters, which were the world's first operational jet-powered fighter aircraft.

Sergeant Watson also talked about the racial discrimination that he and his fellow black servicemembers faced. He specifically highlighted the discrimination that Gen. Benjamin O'Davis, the first black general in the Air Force and commander of the 332nd Fighter Group, faced as a cadet at West Point.

As he was speaking, a security forces Airman sitting in the audience said he felt a connection to the Tuskegee Airmen since he had recently returned from a deployment to Joint Base Balad, Iraq, where the unit he was assigned to was named after 332nd FG. He was there along with 70 other Team Scott security forces Airmen in 2009.

Master Sgt. David Wolfe was assigned to the 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing and said that from the moment a new troop arrives, they are briefed on the rich Tuskegee heritage.

"It's instilled into you from the time you arrive that that's why you're there," said Sergeant Wolfe. While at Balad, his unit renamed and stenciled MRAP vehicles to honor the legacy of their Tuskegee Airmen predecessors. The unit also participated in an unveiling and naming ceremony to officially present the newly dedicated tributes.

Sergeant Wolfe also remarked how alike the 332nd AEW's and 332nd FG's mission were.

"The unit, the wing and the squadron specifically, they're doing a no-kidding war-time combat mission," he said. "We're performing a very similar mission to what the Tuskegee Airmen did in WWII. As security forces our job is the security of the resources on the base and in that respect the ground support that Sergeant Watson and his fellow Airmen provided back in WWII is that same protection we provide today."

With their rally cry, "The Legend Continues," the 332d AEW carries on the Tuskegee heritage through airpower in support of ground forces that include strike, airlift/airdrop, combat search and rescue, aeromedical evacuation, and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions.

Sergeant Wolfe said that having the opportunity to see an Air Force living legend was "phenomenal. There's no telling how much longer we'll be able to see these heroes ... they're our Air Force forefathers, and it's amazing to hear what they went through."