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Red Tail Squadron

Red Tail Squadron
Logo of the Red Tail Project with the words: "RED TAIL" in black letters above the left-aligned word PROJECT in gray letters which are half as tall all of which is above a motto reading: "AMERICA's FLYING TRIBUTE TO THE TUSKEGEE AIRMEN" (c), written in all caps, in a single line the same width as the first and much smaller letters. A single nosed-propeller aircraft with a red tail and nose, black propellers, gray base paint, black letters reading A42. The "4" and "2" are separated by a United States roundel in black with a central white star. The roundel is also visible on the tops of the aircraft's wings.
Focus Military history
Location
  • Organization
    The Red Tail Squadron
    Commemorative Air Force
    971 Hallstrom Drive
    Red Wing, Minnesota 55066

    Aircraft home base
    Hangar No. 3
    Fleming Field
    310 Airport Road
    South St. Paul, Minnesota
Method Exhibition
Website CAF Red Tail Squadron

The Red Tail Squadron, part of the non-profit Commemorative Air Force (CAF) and until June 2011, known as the Red Tail Project, maintains and flies a World War II era North American P-51C Mustang. The twice-restored aircraft flies to create interest in the history and accomplishments of the members of the World War II-era 332nd Fighter Group, also known as the Tuskegee Airmen, whose distinctive red markings on the tails of the P-51s they flew during that war, gave the organization its name.

The all African American 332d Fighter Group originally flew 15,550 sorties as bomber escorts in the Mustang; eventually the Airmen, who were originally shunned in the white military, acquired the right to fly combat missions. In 1970, the Commemorative Air Force acquired an original P-51 to include in their educational program. In 1980, Don Hinz took charge of the aircraft's restoration, and developed the idea of the Red Tail Project, named for the distinctive red paint on the Airmen's aircraft. Originally conceived as a restoration project, Red Tail evolved into an education program. Although the P-51 was restored, mechanical failure caused a crash and the death of the pilot, a retired U.S. Navy commander; the Tuskegee Airmen endorsed and encouraged the aircraft's second restoration, and the newly restored P-51C made its debut at AirVenture 2009 in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.

Since the 1990s, the Red Tail Squadron has raised over $2 million (US) for the aircraft's two restorations, its ongoing maintenance and associated educational programs. The Mustang has been featured in two documentary films: Red Tail Reborn, and Flight of the Red Tail.

The Tuskegee Airmen /tʌsˈkiːɡiː/ is the popular name of a group of African American pilots who fought in World War II as the 332nd Fighter Group of the US Army Air Corps. This was the first unit of African American military aviators in the United States armed forces. During World War II, in much of the United States, African Americans were still subjected to Jim Crow laws and the American military itself was racially segregated. Legal and social prejudice prevented the Airmen from flying combat missions. Despite their adversities, the Tuskegee Airmen flew with distinction: In 2007, 350 Tuskegee Airmen and their widows received the Congressional Gold Medal, and the airfield where they trained has been designated as Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site. Although some sources claimed the Airmen had a perfect record in their 15,000 missions as bomber escorts, recent research has revealed they lost 25 bombers.


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Wikipedia

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