Today is the day our state has set aside
to honor Tuskegee Airmen, the first
African American military wing in the U.S.
Army Air Corp. Ivory Riner attended the
ceremony at Luke Air Force Base and
talked with one of the first Tuskegee Airmen.
The Tuskegee Airmen were the first
African American military airmen with
the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War
Two. Today a wreath was
placed at the Tuskegee Airmen memorial
air park at Luke Air Force Base to honor
the Archer-Ragsdale Arizona chapter of
the Tuskegee Airmen. There are only five
of the first Tuskegee Airmen left in
Arizona. Lieutenant Colonel Robert Ashby
joined the Air Force when he was 17 and
served for 21 years which included one
tour of duty in Korea.  Ashby
volunteered for the Air Corps after they
started training African American men to
fly airplanes. He especially didn't want
to join the infantry.
Wherever you are, you sleep there
And I decided, well you know, if I am in the Air Corps I'll go out on a flight and come back to the base and go to bed.
Colonel Kurt Gallegos was the
commander of the 944th fighter wing and
served for 32 years. Working with the great men
and women of the 944th in the 56th
Fighter Wing to do the mission ito
support and defend our nation we do it
on a day-to-day basis. After the war
ended the Airmen say they faced a lot of
racism and bigotry despite their
outstanding war record. After the service and we got out, then we started thinking about
what we accomplished as the Tuskegee Airmen
and we decided we need to get out and interact with the youngsters.
Tuskegee Airmen Incorporated was formed
to encourage young people to get
involved with the public and the
democratic process. In Glendale, Ivory
Riner, Cronkite News.
