HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 105

BY  ABDUL-SAMAD, GAINES, COWNIE, KRESSIG, HUNTER, T. TAYLOR, WILLEMS, GASKILL, PETTENGILL, KAUFMANN, KOESTER, RUNNING-MARQUARDT, VANDER LINDEN, HEATON, WESSEL-KROESCHELL, H. MILLER, PETERSEN, SCHULTE, HUSEMAN, KELLEY, JACOBY, HEIN, ARNOLD, BERRY, WATTS, KEARNS, LENSING, ISENHART, ALONS, HALL, DE BOEF, STECKMAN, LYKAM, MUHLBAUER, MASCHER, M. SMITH, COHOON, WITTNEBEN, WINCKLER, THEDE, HANSON, KAJTAZOVIC, HEDDENS, and DEYOE

A Resolution remembering and honoring the Tuskegee Airmen.

   WHEREAS, at a time when the United States is again combating terrorism, it is good to remember an earlier time when bloodshed and terror surrounded the globe, and Americans stepped forward and put themselves in harm’s way —— among them were the Tuskegee Airmen; and
   WHEREAS, at the dawn of World War II the 66th Air Force Flying School at Tuskegee Institute was established to train African-American pilots for the war; and
   WHEREAS, almost 1,000 African-Americans trained at the Tuskegee Army Air Field in Tuskegee, Alabama, and 450 of the men were sent overseas for combat duty; and
   WHEREAS, these pilots were known as “Tuskegee Airmen” and were nicknamed “Red-Tail Angels” after the red tail markings on their aircraft; and
   WHEREAS, the 99th Fighter Squadron was sent to North Africa in the spring of 1943 for combat duty and in 1944, they were joined by other African-American squadrons to form the 332nd Fighter Squadron, which flew missions over Sicily, the Mediterranean, and North Africa; and
   WHEREAS, the Tuskegee Airmen compiled an outstanding record, completing more than 1,500 missions, destroying 260 enemy aircraft, sinking an enemy destroyer, and demolishing other enemy installations; and
   WHEREAS, during the war, 66 Tuskegee Airmen were killed in action and 32 were held as prisoners of war; and
   WHEREAS, through their exploits the Tuskegee Airmen helped end segregation in the military; and
   WHEREAS, the Tuskegee Airmen were awarded numerous honors, including the Congressional Gold Medal, awarded during a ceremony with President George W. Bush in 2007; NOW THEREFORE,

   BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, That the House of Representatives honors the brave service of the Tuskegee Airmen and thanks them for their service to the cause of freedom.