Tinker Air Force Base (AFB), Oklahoma - The Tuskegee Airmen Memorial

Tinker Air Force Base (AFB), Oklahoma - The Tuskegee Airmen Memorial

The Tinker AFB Major Charles B. Hall Airpark, where the Memorial is located, is free and open to the public, generally from dawn to dusk; no pass is required. Tours of the Airpark are self-guided, along a central paved sidewalk, with a network of paved walks branching out to individual aircraft and other features. Proceeding east from the parking area along the main (north) walk, the Tuskegee Airmen Memorial is the first of the Memorials displayed on the tour route. It follows the first two aircraft displayed along the walk on the left (north), and sits adjacent to the main walk, on the south. The Memorial features a bronze statue of a Tuskegee Airman standing and pointing. The statue is mounted on a bronze plate and anchored on a circular concrete pad, within a segmented circular sloping concrete wall. The wall has entry points at the four cardinal compass points. At the west entry point, mounted on the north inside wall is a polished black granite tablet inscribed: “Major Charles B. Hall & The Tuskegee Airmen. On 2 July 1943, then 1Lt. Charles B. Hall of Brazil, Indiana, a Tuskegee Airman trained at Tuskegee Field, AL, earned the distinction of being the first African-American to shoot down an enemy aircraft from his P-40 fighter over Tunisia, North Africa. Major Charles B. Hall went on to score a total of three aerial victories in combat. Major Hall moved to Oklahoma City after his military service and worked at Tinker Air Force Base for the Federal Aviation Administration until his death on 22 November 1971. Tuskegee Airmen were awarded a total of 150 Distinguished Flying Crosses, 744 Air Medals, 8 Purple Hearts and 14 Bronze Stars for their service in combat. The full measure of their efforts, buoyed by their tenacity in the face of overwhelming odds, rampant discrimination and often deplorable conditions and treatment, is a testimony to the integrity of the Tuskegee Airmen. Indeed, the success of these airmen contributed greatly to the eventual racial integration of the US military. This site is dedicated to Major Charles B. Hall and the Tuskegee Airmen of WWII.” The tablet also displays images of a P-51 fighter aircraft in the upper left corner, and an unfurled American Flag in the lower right corner. At the east entry point, On the south inside wall, is another polished black granite tablet inscribed: “The Tuskegee Airmen Memorial was made possible by the dedication and funding support of the following sponsors:” (Note: Listed are 23 associations, foundations, companies, and local businesses and entities). The tablet is further inscribed: “A special thanks to the sculptor Joel Randell November 2007” The grounds and lawn immediately around the Memorial’s outside wall have been sloped upward to give the impression of the site being on higher ground. (Note: Tinker AFB is named for Major General Clarence L. Tinker, a native Oklahoman who lost his life while on a combat mission against Wake Island in the Asiatic-Pacific Theater, during World War II.) (Note: Tuskegee airmen is the name generally used to identify the first black service men and women to serve as military pilots, aircrew and ground crew, and in associated maintenance, armament and ordnance, transportation, administrative, medical, and service and support specialties, in the Army Air Forces during World War II. Some non-blacks and a handful of non-Americans are also considered to have been part of the group. A total of 992 pilots were trained at Tuskegee Army Air Field and Tuskegee University, in Alabama, from 1941-46. Some 355 pilots were deployed overseas. More than 15,000 ground personnel served with black units in the American Theater and overseas. The only black air units that saw combat during the war were the 332nd Fighter Group, and its assigned 99th Pursuit (Fighter), 100th, 301st and 302nd Fighter Squadrons. The units earned an enviable record in combat, with the Group being awarded 1 Distinguished Unit Citation (DUC), and the 99th Squadron being awarded 3 DUC, for their extraordinary heroism against the enemy. In addition, some 32 members of the Group were captured and held as Prisoners of War (POW). Although these units flew other aircraft in combat, the aircraft they are most generally associated with is the P-51 “Mustang.” When the 332nd Fighter Group painted the tail section of their aircraft red, the nickname "Red Tails" was coined, and adopted.) (Note: The shoulder sleeve (jacket) insignia (patch) of the 99th Pursuit Squadron, later redesignated as a Fighter Squadron, depicts a gold-winged panther with white details, diving downward from upper right to lower left, with claws extended, on a dark blue circular shield with 9 gold stars divided 4 and 5, and with an indented and segmented gold border.) (Note: The 332nd Fighter Group Distinguished Unit Insignia (Crest) depicts a black panther breathing red fire, on a horizontal gold nebuly field, dividing a dark blue shield. The motto “SPIT FIRE” is dark blue on a gold scroll. The insignia was made from authorized drawings but never worn by the unit.) (Note: The North American P-51 “Mustang” Fighter aircraft was the most capable U.S. land-based fighter of the war. It was a single-engine, low-wing, single pilot fighter aircraft capable of long-range and high-altitude flight. By 1943, the U.S. daylight strategic bombing effort in the European-African-Middle Eastern Theater was on the verge of failing due to the high loss rate of unescorted American long-range bombers. Existing fighters did not have the combat range to escort bombers to and from target areas on the continent. It was the introduction of the P-51 in December, 1943 that permitted resumption of daylight bombing over Europe. The P-51 was fitted with auxiliary drop tanks to permit continuous protection for bombers on extended range missions.)

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Organization Responsible for Installation:

U.S. Government & 23 associated sponsors

Memorial War Era(s):

WWII

Location:

Tinker AFB, Oklahoma County, Oklahoma 73145. Access at the Tinker Gate/Air Depot Boulevard exit to Tinker Air Force Base, off Interstate Highway I-40/US Hwy 270, south of Midwest City, Oklahoma. The Airpark in which the Memorial is located is east of the Visitor Center (Building 6611), prior to arrival at the Federally-controlled access entrance - Tinker Gate. Enter the Visitor Center parking area and proceed east across the lot to the east exit onto S. Air Depot Boulevard. Cross the 1-way (outbound) Boulevard and enter an iron-gated parking area to the immediate front (east). An entry sign identifies Major Charles B. Hall, for whom the Airpark is named. The Airpark is also easily distinguishable by a number of Air Force aircraft on display, and a flagpole on the south, near the entry.

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Tinker Air Force Base (AFB), Oklahoma - The Tuskegee Airmen Memorial

Tinker Air Force Base (AFB), Oklahoma - The Tuskegee Airmen Memorial

Tinker Air Force Base (AFB), Oklahoma - The Tuskegee Airmen Memorial

Tinker Air Force Base (AFB), Oklahoma - The Tuskegee Airmen Memorial

Tinker Air Force Base (AFB), Oklahoma - The Tuskegee Airmen Memorial

Tinker Air Force Base (AFB), Oklahoma - The Tuskegee Airmen Memorial

Tinker Air Force Base (AFB), Oklahoma - The Tuskegee Airmen Memorial

Tinker Air Force Base (AFB), Oklahoma - The Tuskegee Airmen Memorial

Tinker Air Force Base (AFB), Oklahoma - The Tuskegee Airmen Memorial

 

Published on October 13, 2017