fbpx

KidsKonnect

Tuskegee Airmen Facts & Worksheets

The Tuskegee Airmen were the first black military aviators in the U.S. Army Air Corps (AAC), a precursor of the U.S. Air Force.

Search for Worksheets

Worksheets /Social Studies /Black History /Tuskegee Airmen Facts & Worksheets

Premium
Tuskegee Airmen Worksheets
Not ready to purchase a subscription? Click to download the free sample version   Download sample

The Tuskegee Airmen were the first black military aviators in the U.S. Army Air Corps (AAC), a precursor of the U.S. Air Force.

See the fact file below for more information on the Tuskegee Airmen or alternatively, you can download our 22-page Tuskegee Airmen worksheet pack to utilise within the classroom or home environment.

Key Facts & Information

BREAKING THE SEGREGATION

  • Prior to World War II, the American military consisted only of Caucasians. The racist ideology of the time suggested that black people were not capable of fighting effectively in a war.
  • However, the rising unease in the late 1930s over a possible war in Europe and Asia prompted the federal government to expand its air defenses and the civilian pilot training program, which was opened up to black people.
  • A Howard University student filed a lawsuit in protest, and due to pressure from black newspapers, the NAACP, sympathetic government leaders, and President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the “Tuskegee Experiment” was begun.
  • A flight school was founded at Tuskegee University in Alabama, and on July 19, 1941, the Army Air Corps initiated the program.
  • The “Tuskegee Experiment” was expected to fail but was a resounding success. The group consisted of African Americans, five Haitians, a pilot from Trinidad, and airmen from the Dominican Republic.

WORLD WAR II SERVICES

  • Each of the black military pilots passed through flying training phases. The first of these was civilian pilot training (CPT).
  • After CPT, the trainees had to undergo four more phases of training, which included flying PT-17 and PT-13 biplanes and P-40 fighter aircraft used in combat during World War II.
  • Like military flight training, the standards were high and many prospective pilots did not graduate from all the phases of training, much less join the WWII sorties.
  • The first black flying unit was the 99th Fighter Squadron led by Benjamin O. Davis Jr.
  • In April 1943, the 99th Fighter Squadron was deployed to French Morocco as the campaign in North Africa was ending. 
  • Their primary mission was to escort and attack enemy targets on the ground on the Italian islands of Pantelleria and Sicily, and the Italian mainland.
  • It earned its first aerial victory when 1st Lt. Charles B. Hall shot down an FW-190 aircraft in July 1943.
  • On January 27 and 28, 1944, while protecting Allied ground forces from enemy air attacks, they shot down 13 enemy airplanes.
  • In February 1944, the 99th, 100th, 301st, and 302nd fighter squadrons and other personnel arrived in Italy and made up the new 332nd Fighter Group.
  • 332nd flew P-51 Mustangs to escort the 15th Air Force heavy bombers during raids. The tails of their planes were painted red, earning them the enduring nickname “Red Tails.”
  • During the war, Tuskegee Airmen escorting bombers were downed by enemy fire only seven times out of the 179 missions they executed.
  • A total of 27 Tuskegee Airmen-escorted bombers were shot down by enemy airplanes.
  • During its combat overseas, the 332nd Fighter Group and its four squadrons shot down a total of 112 enemy airplanes.
  • The Fighter Group completed its combat missions in late April 1945, and the war in Europe ended in early May. Its mission accomplished, the group redeployed to the United States and was inactivated in October.

TUSKEGEE RIPPLE

  • After the Tuskegee squadrons were disbanded, there were several attempts to revive the integration of black soldiers into the U.S. military.
  • President Harry S. Truman thus issued Executive Order 9981 in 1948, mandating the racial integration of all military services.
  • Black Navy and Marine Corps pilots as well as black Air Force pilots were eventually recognized.
  • Benjamin Davis became the first black general in the Air Force.
  • Gen. Daniel “Chappie” James flew fighter aircraft in the Korean and Vietnam wars and rose to become the first black four-star general in the Air Force.
  • Col. Charles McGee, who had served with the 332nd Fighter Group, also served in Korea and Vietnam and flew 409 combat missions – more than any other Air Force pilot in the three wars.
  • John H. Leahr logged 329 hours of combat flying time, and after his illustrious military career, went on to be one of America’s first black stockbrokers.

TUSKEGEE, INC.

  • Col. Charles McGee and other Airmen formed Tuskegee Airmen Incorporated in the early 1970s.
  • The organization educates the public about the heritage of the Tuskegee Airmen and sponsors educational programs for youth, especially those interested in going into the field of aviation.
  • In 2007, Pres. George W. Bush presented a Congressional Gold Medal collectively to the Tuskegee Airmen.
  • In 2012, Lucasfilm Ltd. released Red Tails, a film about the Tuskegee Airmen and their participation in the 1944 bombing raids.

Tuskegee Airmen Worksheets

This is a fantastic bundle which includes everything you need to know about Tuskegee Airmen across 22 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use Tuskegee Airmen worksheets that are perfect for teaching students about the Tuskegee Airmen who were the first black military aviators in the U.S. Army Air Corps (AAC), a precursor of the U.S. Air Force.

Complete List Of Included Worksheets

  • Air Force Lingo
  • A Skilled Pilot
  • The Red Tails
  • Tuskegee Experience
  • Heroes in the Sky
  • Flight Suits
  • For A Hero
  • Tuskegee Era
  • People of Color
  • Racial Reflection

Frequently Asked Questions

What did the Tuskegee Airmen do that was important?

The famous “Tuskegee Airmen” of the 332nd Fighter Group became part of the 15th Air Force, flying alongside American bombers over Italy. They were in charge of defending large bombers from German fighter planes as escorts flying P-47s and later P-51s.

How many planes did Tuskegee Airmen shoot down?

They’d knocked down or damaged 36 German aircraft in the air and 237 on the ground, along with nearly 1,000 railway cars and transport vehicles.

How many missions did the Tuskegee Airmen fly?

The Tuskegee Airmen’s performance during World War II proved that they were just as good as any other group of pilots. In total, they flew more than 1,800 missions, 351 of which protected bombers in the sky.

Link/cite this page

If you reference any of the content on this page on your own website, please use the code below to cite this page as the original source.

Link will appear as Tuskegee Airmen Facts & Worksheets: https://kidskonnect.com - KidsKonnect, July 25, 2022

Use With Any Curriculum

These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.

Related Resources