Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site: A Look Back at History of Heroes

 AAE recently visited Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site in Alabama. The site is the former airbase where the famed Tuskegee Airmen trained as combat pilots before heading off to World War II. The base was built in 1941. 

Civil and human rights activists pressed for the U.S. military to include African Americans in the Army Air Corps program to fight in the war. This pressure resulted in creation of the Tuskegee Airmen. The Airmen would overcome segregation and racism to become one of the most highly regarded fighting units of the wartime.

The sign above has information about the history of the base and its original buildings and what they were used for. 

This overlook view of the base shows the main hangar. Pilots were trained, planes were maintained and other activities helped create a well-prepared combat force that made its mark in the war effort. 

Pictured is a bust of Robert Moton, for whom the airfield is named. He was the second president of Tuskegee Institute, now Tuskegee University. 

The "ghost building" shown here is a frame outline of one of the original buildings on the base that is no longer standing. It is designed to show the dimensions and location of the building to give modern-day visitors a sense of what the base looked like when it was fully operational. 

Officers from the Army Air Corps were assigned to lead training at Tuskegee Institute/Moton Field. They provided cadets with textbooks, flying clothes, parachutes and mechanic suits. Tuskegee Institute served as a civilian contractor, and supplied facilities for the aircraft and personnel, including quarters and a dining hall for cadets, hangars, maintenance shops and more.