Celebrated Tuskegee Airman Charles McGee dies at 102

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP

By DOUGLASS K. DANIEL

WASHINGTON (AP) — Charles McGee, a Tuskegee Airman who flew 409 fighter combat missions over three wars and later helped to bring attention to the Black pilots who had battled racism at home to fight for freedom abroad, died Sunday. He was 102.

McGee died in his sleep at his home in Bethesda, Maryland, said his son, Ron McGee.

After the U.S. entry into World War II, McGee left the University of Illinois to join an experimental program for Black soldiers seeking to train as pilots after the Army Air Corps was forced to admit African Americans. In October 1942 he was sent to the Tuskegee Army Air Field in Alabama for flight training, according to his biography on the website of the National Aviation Hall of Fame.

“You could say that one of the things we were fighting for was equality,” he told The Associated Press in a 1995 interview. “Equality of opportunity. We knew we had the same skills, or better.”



FILE - Tuskegee airman Charles McGee and his great grandson Iain Lanphier react as President Donald Trump delivers his State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2020. McGee, one of the last surviving Tuskegee Airmen who flew 409 fighter combat missions over three wars, died Sunday, Jan. 16, 2022. He was 102. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)


Read more: https://apnews.com/article/kamala-harris-race-and-ethnicity-bc701d5f060a826a49e6fe88c53657c5

[3catwoman3]

1. He has slipped the surly bonds.

May his spirit fly free.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

2. From Secretary of Defense, Lloyd Austin

Link to tweet

[usaf-vet]

3. One hell of a wingman. Hand Salute to you Sir! You make me even prouder to have served in USAF.

[sarge43]

4. CAVU, Airman

Thank you.

[oasis]

5. Rest in peace.

[GB_RN]

6. Cheers And A Salute To A Hero...

RIP, General McGee. May you fly forever...

[pdxflyboy]

7. I wish you eternal tailwinds, Sir.

[Harker]

8. From P-51 to Phantom in over 400 combat missions.

Imperial Japan bombed Pearl Harbor on his 22nd birthday.

RIP.

[40RatRod]

9. Rest in Peace Sir.

Such an incredible man. Still flew at 100 to an AF installation to meet the troops.

[LoisB]

10. Fly high, sir, you earned your wings.

[Mr.Bill]

11. I may owe my very existence to the Tuskegee Airmen.

How so, seeing that I wasn't born until 1953?

During WWII the Tuskegee Airmen have the incredible record of not losing one bomber they were escorting to enemy fighters.

On a number of occasions, my dad was inside of one of those planes. Growing up in Baltimore during the 20s and 30s, it's possible if not probable that he was somewhat bigoted when it came to black people at the time he went to war. But I can tell you he wasn't when he came home. The N word was forbidden in our house.

[Irish_Dem]

14. You are right, most likely the Tuskegees made your birth possible.

I just happened to have seen a movie called the Red Tails, about the Tuskegee fighter pilots who escorted US bombers over Europe during WWII.
See it if you can, it is on Amazon Prime Video.

Prior to the Tuskegee Red Tails, (white) fighter escorts did a lousy job protecting the bombers, pealing away to fight the Nazis leaving the bombers exposed. Fighter pilots wanted the glory and kill rates instead of doing their job. The bomber mortality rate was quite high, they didn't make it back home.

Then the Red Tails were assigned the job and they did it very well. They stuck with the bombers and survival rates increased for the bombers. Not for the Red Tails.

Right, my dad was career Air Force, flew in WWII and any negative comments about black Americans was forbidden in our home.

[Mr.Bill]

15. I will also add

that my dad said not only did they feel safe when escorted by the Tuskegee Airmen, they also put on one hell of an airshow on the way to the target.

[Irish_Dem]

16. That is very interesting, wow.

I am loving the first hand account.

The movie told how the Red Tail squadron leader painted the front and back of their planes red, giving them their nickname. They had been given new planes for the bomber escort mission. They were great looking planes.

Also in the movie, we saw the maneuvering and flashy style. It was just beautiful. Very distinctive and wonderful.

I grew up in the Air Force as a military brat and if we could have seen beautiful planes flying like that we would have gone nuts with excitement.
I wish military Air Shows would do some Red Tail reenactments.

A couple of other interesting things from the movie. When the Red Tails first came on the scene, the bomber pilots had no idea who they were and assumed they might be German. They had never seen planes decked out like the Red Tails.

Another scene shows US bombers flying into Berlin with the Red Tails and the Germans have just started using jet planes. No one has seen them before and they flew fast as hell. At first the Red tails are unnerved but they very quickly realize that the German jet pilots cannot maneuver worth a darn, so the Red Tails are all over the jets, shooting them down one by one.

I hope you can see the movie. You will get a chance to see what your father talked about. My dad flew the Burma Hump in WWII, so I didn't hear the stories you did!

Thank you for sharing.

[Mr.Bill]

17. I have seen the movie.

I wish my dad could have seen it. He passed away in 1990.

He was one of those veterans who never talked much about the war and what he did. He would talk about the Tuskegee Airmen, though.

[LeftInTX]

12. My daughter received a scholarship from the Tuskegee Airmen

They honored her with a banquet.
It was a big deal.

We are not black and since she has a Hispanic surname, they probably knew she wasn't black when she applied.

My daughter was one of those high school students who managed to get a hold of a list of every scholarship available.
She applied with Tuskegee Airmen.
What a great organization

https://www.taisf.org/scholarship-information.html

[lastlib]

13. Rode in a car with him in 2010.

Wonderful soul! He was commander of an air force base near my home town, later administrator for a major urban airport here as a civilian. He knew a lot of people I had heard about over the years, so we had lots to talk about between us. Fascinating to talk to! A real national treasure!

RIP, Gen. McGee.