Radio and Television Shows
24/7
"Hot Chocolate Goes With Everything"
(Actual Gold Metal goes to the Smithsonian - Bronze reproductions went to the airmen)
In 2007, the Tuskegee Airmen were honored with a Congressional Gold Medal,
the highest civilian award in the United States.
CITY OF PEORIA, ARIZONA HONORS FOR THE DOCUMENTED ORIGINAL TUSKEGEE AIRMEN (DOTA)
City of Peoria Hosts - The Tuskegee Airmen
1st Lt. Dr. Thurston Gaines (Retired), Lt. Col. Robert(Bob) Ashby (Retired) and Lt. Col. Asa Herring (Retired) each told there stories and experiences as Tuskegee Airmen at a special event at the Peoria City Hall on March 31, 2010 in the counsel chamber. Also in attendance were members of the U.S. Air Force. Decades after they answered the call to serve their country during World War II, these brave men along with nearly one thousand others, were honored by the City of Peoria. When the war broke out these men were not considered candidates for honors. After much humiliation and degredation before, during and after the war, these men are now receiving the honors they rightly deserve. In 2007 they were given the Congressional Gold Metal by the president. Cities and towns across the country are beginning to see the valuable experience, dedication, committment and protection these men gave the country more than sixty-five years ago.
The city of Peoria held this special ceremony for these local residents who gave of their strength and wisdom to a nation at war. The mayor , city manager and many other dignitaries came out in support of the airmen. Col. Dave Davis, special assistant to the commander of the 944th Fighter Wing at Luke Air Force Base, presented a plaque of appreciation to them for their service to the U.S. Air Force. Mayor Barrett presented a plaque from the city in appreciation of their service to the community and nation. Click Here for more info on the contribution they made to a nation now honoring them.
The Photo Gallery presents the images from this event.
More Videos of Tuskegee Airmen
The Tuskegee Airmen 332nd Fighter Group
Greater Phoenix Chapter - Blacks In Government
A Little History
They were pilots, mechanics, intelligence officers, accountants, became doctors corporate presidents, politicians and much more.
Three things were unusual about these men. First, they became airmen who became American fighter pilots. Second, they were about to make history. Third, they were Black. They flew with the only U.S. Fighter Group in World War Two that could claim to have never lost a bomber in their care. That Group was the 332nd Fighter Group, "The Redtails," the famous all-Black outfit that fought both American prejudice and Nazi militarism. Under the leadership and iron discipline of Col. Benjamin O. Davis, the Redtails had learned that their mission in life was to protect the bombers.
Tonight the Greater Phoenix Chapter - Blacks in Government honored the remaining Tuskegee Airmen.These men have become an example for all black men to follow, whether in the military or civilian life.
Honors for service to the security of America
Front Row from left to right:
- Master Sgt Buford A. Johnson - The First African American jet mechanic and Crew Chief in U.S.A.F.
- Lt Thurston Gaines - Pilot, POW in Stalag VII-A in Mooseberg, Germany Became a medical doctor!
- Lt Col Asa Herring - Pilot, medals including Bronze Star and flew over 350 combat missions over Vietnam
- Lt Col Theodore G. Lumpkin - Air Intel Officer
- Lt Col Robert "Bob" Ashby - Pilot: Flew Stearman PT-17, AT-6, B-25, The first black pilot hired by Frontier Airlines
- Howard Arthur Williams, Jr. - Mechanic, and metals winner including the U.N. Korean Service Metal
- O. Oliver Goodall - Multi-engine pilot, member of class 44-K-TE member of 477th Bombardment Group
Among those attending were District 8 City Councilman Michael Johnson and VA Hospital Administrator Perez.
2010 ARIZONA EAGLE AWARDS WINNERS - FOR MERITORIOUS SERVICE TO AMERICA
FOUR RECIPIENTS
The Prisoner of War medal recognizes anyone who was a POW after April 5, 1917.
Learn more about this and other medals.
Lt. Thurston L. Gaines Jr. was shot down days before the war in Europe ended.
Gaines of Freeport, N.Y., attended Howard University in Washington, D.C., before he was drafted in 1943. He graduated from flight training on Aug. 4, 1944, at Tuskegee Army Air Field, Ala., and soon deployed to Italy with the 99th Fighter Squadron, part of the 332nd Fighter Group. Gaines flew his first combat mission in February 1945.
On April 15, Col. Benjamin O. Davis Jr. led an afternoon strafing mission, targeting three rail yards near Munich, Germany. The 332nd Fighter Group destroyed or damaged 35 locomotives, eight oil cars, 44 other rail cars, four barges and four vehicle transports on a flat rail car. Lt. Jimmy Lanham also shot down an enemy plane. For the mission, Davis would earn the Silver Star – the only Silver Star awarded to the 332nd Fighter Group. But Flight Officer Gaines was was forced to parachute from his P-51 Mustang after it was hit by anti-aircraft fire.
"While flying from north to south, strafing a train, flak from the area around the train hit Flight Officer Gaines' aircraft in the tail section," Maj. William A. Campbell wrote in a military report. "The pilot was observed to land safely and walked into a wooded area. The plane exploded and crashed."
Gaines was captured and marched past a wrecked Allied plane.
"About half mile from where my ship crashed, there were airplane parts of a crash strewn over an area of about 50 yards," Gaines later wrote in a military report. "Under a tree in the midst of the debris and covered with his partly burned parachute was the body of an Allied airman. The Germans made me view the body, which was burned and somewhat mangled, though intact. My observation was that the airman went down with his ship, and that the Germans had removed his body from the wreckage. No means of identification (was) available."
Gaines was held as a prisoner of war at Stalag VIIA near Moosburg, Germany, until the camp was liberated on April 29. After the war, he returned to Tuskegee Army Air Field, and became a B-25 bomber instructor pilot. At his next assignment, Gaines served as squadron adjutant at Lockbourne Air Base, Ohio. By the time he left the military in 1947, Gaines had been promoted to first lieutenant.
Gaines returned to college, graduating from New York University in 1948, and earning his medical degree from Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tenn., in June 1953. He retired from medicine in 1988 after serving as the medical director of a Massachusetts veteran hospital.
Gaines now lives in Litchfield Park, Ariz. He tours the nation as a member of Tuskegee Airmen Inc. and works as an elementary school substitute teacher. According to a military biography, Gaines was awarded an Air Medal with two oak leaf clusters and a Purple Heart for his military service.
| Name | Prison camp | When captured |
| Lt. Gene C. Browne | Stalag Luft I | July 19, 1944, Austria |
| Lt. Thurston L. Gaines Jr. | Stalag VIIA | April 15, 1945, Germany |
| Lt. William E. Griffin | Stalag Luft I | Jan. 15, 1944, Italy |
| Lt. Alexander Jefferson | Stalag Luft III, Stalag VIIA | Aug. 12, 1944, France |
| Lt. Richard D. Macon | Stalag Luft III, Stalag VIIA | Aug. 12, 1944, France |
| Capt. Armour G. McDaniel | Stalag VIIA | March 31, 1945, Germany |
| Lt. Starling B. Penn | Stalag Luft I | July 25, 1944, Austria |
| Lt. Luther H. Smith | Hospital and Stalag 18A | Oct. 13, 1944, Austria |
| Lt. Henry A. Wise Jr. | Camp in Bulgaria | Aug. 26, 1944, Bulgaria |
|
|||||
|
|||||
Asa Herring, a Tuskegee Airman and retired U.S. Air Force Fighter Pilot, was born in Dunn, N.C. October 3, 1926. He has been an avid aviation enthusiast all of his life. He graduated from High School at age sixteen. While a student at Tuskegee Institute in the Aircraft Maintenance program, he passed the U.S. Army Air Corps Aviation Cadet written examination. Because he was only seventeen years old, he had to wait until he was eighteen before he could be inducted.
Asa entered active duty December 27, 1944 as a aviation cadet. He flew the Stearman PT-17 and AT-6. He was approximately three months short of graduation when it was apparent that WW II was in its final stages. Germany had surrendered and the "Tuskegee Experiment" was one of many flying schools that were soon to be eliminated. Flying was continued but was drastically curtailed. All of the cadets who had volunteered (not draftees) were given the option of accepting an honorable discharge. Partly because of the segregated policies in the military and the desire to further his education, Asa chose to separate from the military.
Asa graduated from several top-notch technical schools-Tuskegee Institute, Ala.; Aeronautical University in Chicago, Ill.; and Lewis College of Science and Technology in Lockport, Ill. Although he received his credentials from the Civil Aeronautics Administration as a certified Aircraft and Engine Mechanic and Aircraft Ground Instructor in 1959, he was still unable to obtain employment with an airline or fixed base operator. By this time, the Air Force had become a separate branch of the military, and President Harry S. Truman's executive order #9981 banned segregation in the military. Stuck on the "horns of a dilemma," Asa again volunteered for military service in June 1949 and remained on active duty until June 1970 when he retired at the rank of lieutenant colonel.
During his 22 years of military service, Asa served in England, Korea, Germany, Vietnam, and other temporary assignments worldwide. He was the first Black Squadron Commander at Luke Air Force Base, Ariz.., where he trained pilots in the F-104 G Advanced Jet Fighter Gunnery Program. He was officially appointed an honorary Command Pilot in the German Luftwaffe.
Asa has flown the PT-17, AT-6, 01E&F, F-51D, T-33, F-86A, F-84F, F-100C,D,F,&G; and F-104G. He flew 350 combat missions in Vietnam. His decorations include the Distinguished Flying Cross, Bronze Star, and Air Medal with 13 Oak Leaf Clusters.
Asa retired from the Air Force in 1970 and joined the Western-Electric Co (Manufacturing branch of AT&T). There he served in several management positions including personnel, quality assurance, manufacturing operations, benefits administration and others. He retired from AT&T in December 1989.
Asa has a BA degree from Ottawa University, Kan., in Business Administration/Business Management. His civic activities include former member of Phoenix Union High School Vocational Advisory Board; Opportunities Industrialization Center (OIC)/Prevocational Advisory Board; Board of Directors, Phoenix Business Development Center; Chairman of the General Merchandise Concessions Committee (Module III), Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport; Chairman. City of Phoenix Municipal Aeronautics Board; City of Phoenix Community Development Block Grant Committee.
Dec 8, 2008 ... Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day Date: 12/08/08 World War II veteran Nelson Mitchell posts the colors during the Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day
At dawn on December 7, 1941, Japanese planes attacked the United States Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor In Hawaii.
Anxious to maintain their military and economic power in the region the Japanese planned to cripple the U.S. fleet which would then allow them to attack the Philippines and Indo-China without opposition and acquire the raw materials they needed to maintain their position.
Several ships were sunk or damaged, the U.S.S. Oklahoma capsized, and the U.S.S. Arizona was completely destroyed. More than 2,300 Americans died in the attack.
The next day President Franklin D. Roosevelt addressed a joint session of Congress, which declared war against Japan, and the United States officially entered World War II. The Japanese had no idea they were awakening a sleeping giant. December 7th, 1941 truly was a date which would live in infamy.
James Bradley, whose father was one of those who raised the flag on Iwo Jima, has studied the war and the reason Japan attacked us in the first place.
National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day, 2008
A Proclamation by the President of the United States of America
On National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day, we mourn the more than 2,400 Americans whose lives were lost in the surprise attack on our homeland that changed the course of history. Their service and sacrifice and the service and sacrifice of all our World War II veterans will be forever honored on this day by the citizens of a free and grateful Nation.
On December 7, 1941, the enemy nearly destroyed our Pacific Fleet, and the United States was forced into a long and terrible war. A generation of Americans stepped forward to fight for our country. Their message to America's enemies was clear: If you attack this country and harm our people, there is no corner of the Earth remote enough to protect you from the reach of our Nation's Armed Forces.
Following the war the United States worked to make our most bitter enemies into our closest friends through the transformative power of freedom. The joys of liberty are often secured by the sacrifices of those who serve a cause greater than self. To honor and recognize the sacrifice of our Armed Forces, I have designated nine sites as the World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument. This monument will preserve our history and help share this heritage with future generations. On this anniversary, we honor the heroes who risked and lost their lives for our security and freedom. Their selfless dedication exemplifies the great character of America and continues to inspire our Nation.
The Congress, by Public Law 103-308, as amended, has designated December 7 of each year as "National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day."
NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim December 7, 2008, as National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day. I encourage all Americans to observe this solemn occasion with appropriate ceremonies and activities. I urge all Federal agencies and interested organizations, groups, and individuals to fly the flag of the United States at half-staff this December 7 in honor of those who died as a result of their service at Pearl Harbor.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this fifth day of December, in the year of our Lord two thousand eight, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-third.
GEORGE W. BUSH
