how about the steps? the windows right along. stick the garage, need attention? does your property finish? is your property landscape take advantage of the national housing to repair and modernize? do it? now.

here for the first time, -- aviation cadets for being groom to fly of a unit which was then a unit and part only the 99th squadron. these men were pioneers of adventure. knew that you stand here before me now after years may still be forerunners in the movement, which is giving you a place in the fighting men. the sky was.

this f-4 is representative of today's modern air force. it's an air force which come a long way, sophisticated weapons systems, sophisticated people today, you or me or anybody who's qualified can fly this airplane. but it hasn't always been that way. some 35 years ago, a group of young men and women came together to help make the air force what it is. today, you might even say they made a little history in the process. it all began the skies over tuskegee, alabama.

i remember the tuskegee because they started what they call civilian pilot training program, five black colleges. they wanted qualified black people to start flying. the only reason i knew something about the program is because my mother teaching down in turkey and she heard about the starting up this black air corps the day after pearl harbor, the whole gang went and applied for admission to the aviation cadet training program. it wasn't until a year later, though, that i was admitted, but i think we had to wait for about approximately a year, a year and a half before. we went into the program. i was in black leather school that up for the air force and they didn't know what to do with me going into combat, it gave a lot of credibility to our race.

and one of the prime contributors to and early part of the flying program. was chief anderson there are standing on the southeast north west but what used to be tuskegee is army air corps. you here's where the cadets came out finishing in the voting field take the advanced training there. how's here? in barracks up on the hill there barely see some of the old chimneys standing where the barracks used to be all behind field. here was the headquarters. there's the original building that was built here in the beginning of the army air force training program. out here, further oh to my right is where the flight was. and then the planes are lined up all along that ramp with the very first type of aircraft up there. it went up. the pilots used to come out and

fly the practice out here on this trip. the roll tail, drag race and sometime i got to see this but we didn't see them take all the lead. they really got a big kick out of. really does bring back memories they both the fellows over here who flew over here came to the boat field, the pilot over there. i got acquainted with him and always looked forward to seeing him get their wings with most of them there. there was a great desire, but a number of blacks to get into aviation and this is about the only place that they could come to and where they had an opportunity to learn something about fly. i myself applied for a flying training way back in 1935. i was 18 when i went into the program, 19 when i became a pilot, i was just really a country boy trying to make it.

i think the one of the most exhilarating feelings was to me when i was able to get up there by myself and really fly that airplane and make it do what i wanted it to do. the interesting common though, that surrounded all of their backgrounds, that all of them that wanted to fly i think one of the principal things about, general davis, he instilled in us sense of discipline. and i started out with these young people back then, a black air force in europe, world war two performances, the absolute key in combat to protect the bombers, to prevent from getting shot down by enemy fighters. the 99% squadron was an expert and dropping bombs and hitting targets hitting locomotives. it was awful actually put an aerial combat the 99 squadron

did one thing at anzio that no other did it sat down 16 enemy airplanes. so they got the guys that. got. my eye. all right i think we had quite a bit of competition amongst the squadron trying to make ace and we had a few that came near when we get into space, we gathered some real good friends and. we had a quite a few decorations. i retired yesterday. i feel one of my ambitions for the combat pilot. i got one airplane and the set was me and to fort worth came on right. i turned right and put up a

stone wall and the primary. then was bombing strategic targets like to you? we flew one mission there. it took us all the way up to the czechoslovak and polish border, 50. it was the longest mission i, i think a long 7 hours, 25 minutes. but i think it's safe to say that the germans new garrison respected us. we were the only that didn't lose a bomber. as a historian, you only have the 32nd group. nevertheless. this was my country i wanted a piece of it. i had to fight it. but i'll be -- if i'm going to let some other country come in and take it over. in the heat of a war the adrenaline started flowing.

you wanted to go and what was going on? and was an adventure. you know that the sociological out there but these are the that we were learning to fight against and we felt that the country needed this and so therefore what we wanted to do our part i would have liked a different arena in which to operate but since it wasn't there, i persisted, i don't think that i could have succeeded as dramatically in another career field during that period of time. the man that came to morton field had a common cause. the common denominator, their intent and was to live down the adage that the black did not the capabilities to fly, not perform in leadership roles.

this man lived to see a goal reach a which they all dreamed. we all remembered young chappie james no, it was in 1943 that i completed flight training at tuskegee institute alabama. we've come a long way since then in the days of tuskegee, in addition to the already difficult job of flying, we trained under the additional pressures of segregation but we had no time for self-pity or despair. we were too busy preparing ourselves for a career of service to our nation, the state of our fully integrated air today is a pretty good indication that we did a good job. that doesn't mean that the future will be a rose garden or that there will not be other obstacles to overcome freedom must be repurchased by new generation. when the tuskegee flying program offered to america's black youngsters, we were ready. we had prepared ourselves for

this opportunity. when it presented itself, we grabbed it with both hands. prepare yourself so that when you're a tuskegee appears, you will be ready. they were just exceptional people, there's no doubt about that. they're exceptional people. i've seen the creme