This is a chronological list of Tuskegee Airmen Cadet Pilot Graduation Classes from 1942 to 1946.
The Tuskegee Airmen See "Pronunciation of Tuskegee" , thefreedictionary.com; retrieved 3 October 2010. were a group of primarily African American military pilots (fighter and bomber) and airmen who fought in World War II. They formed the 99th Fighter Squadron, the 332nd Expeditionary Operations Group and the 477th Bombardment Group of the United States Army Air Forces. The name also applies to the navigators, bombardiers, mechanics, instructors, crew chiefs, nurses, cooks and other support personnel.
This list compiles all documented cadet pilot graduates who trained at the Tuskegee Army Air Field, Moton Field, and other locations prior to the U.S. Air Force's deactivation of all-African American Air units.Black Knights – The Story of the Tuskegee Airmen, by Lynn M. Holman and Thomas Reilly. There are 1007 documented Tuskegee Airmen Pilots.
This list includes training in the Tuskegee Aviation Cadet School's three cadet programs: Single-Engine Cadet Pilot Class (i.e. trained to fly Bell P-39 Airacobra, Curtiss P-40 Warhawk, Republic P-47 Thunderbolt, North American P-51 Mustang or similar single engine combat fighter aircraft); Twin-Engine Cadet Pilot Class (i.e. trained to fly the North American B-25 Mitchell, or Liaison Pilot Cadet Class (i.e. training to serve as liaison and service pilots).
This list excludes: Individuals in non-pilot, support operations. Anyone who may have attended the Tuskegee Airmen cadet pilot program but failed to graduate. Such individuals were often pejoratively deemed as "washed out". Some "washed out" cadets were transferred to the 477th Bombardment Group, Tuskegee's "bomber boys". The 477th comprised four squadrons of B-25 Mitchell bombers, stationed at Hondo Army Air Field in Texas. This group did not see combat in World War II. On October 25, 1943, the inaugural group of "washed out" Tuskegee Airmen arrived at Hondo.
Graduating Cadet Class – Single Engine Section – SE-42-C – March 7, 1942 2nd Lt Lemuel R. Custis Captain Benjamin O. Davis Jr. 2nd Lt Charles DeBow 2nd Lt George S. Roberts 2nd Lt Mac Ross
Graduating Cadet Class – Single Engine Section – SE-42-D – April 29, 1942 2nd Lt Sidney P. Brooks 2nd Lt Charles W. Dryden 2nd Lt Clarence C. Jamison
Graduating Cadet Class – Single Engine Section – SE-42-E – May 20, 1942 2nd Lt James B. Knighten 2nd Lt George L. Knox II, listed as George L. Knox 2nd Lt Lee Rayford 2nd Lt Sherman W. White Jr.
Graduating Cadet Class – Single Engine Section – SE-42-F – July 3, 1942 2nd Lt. Willie Ashley 2nd Lt. George R. Bolling 2nd Lt. William A. Campbell, listed as William A. Campbell 2nd Lt. Herbert Carter, listed as Herbert E. Carter 2nd Lt. Herbert V. Clark 2nd Lt. Charles B. Hall 2nd Lt. Allen G. Lane 2nd Lt. Erwin B. Lawrence Jr. 2nd Lt. Faythe A. McGinnis 2nd Lt. Paul G. Mitchell 2nd Lt. Louis Purnell, listed as Louis R. Purnell 2nd Lt. Graham Smith, listed as Graham Smith 2nd Lt. Spann Watson 2nd Lt. James T. Wiley
Graduating Cadet Class – Single Engine Section – SE-42-G – August 5, 1942 2nd Lt Richard C. Davis, killed in action on January 30, 1943. 2nd Lt Willie H. Fuller, listed as Willie Fuller. Not to be confused with Flight Officer William A. Fuller Jr. of Single Engine Section Cadet Class SE-45-E, August 4, 1945) 2nd Lt Cassius C.A. Harris 2nd Lt Earl E. King ("Wamba" King), killed in action on March 12, 1943. The Tuskegee Airmen's third ever casualtyTuskegee Airmen Chronology. Daniel Haulman. Organizational History Branch. Air Force Historical Research Agency. Maxwell AFB, AL 36112-6424. 14 November 2011 "24 March 1943: Lt. Earl E. King became the third casualty of the 99th Fighter Squadron (99th Fighter Squadron history, Mar 1941-17 Oct 1943)."p. 9. 2nd Lt Walter I. Lawson 2nd Lt John McClure, listed as John M. McClure. Actual name is John William McClure 2nd Lt Leon C. Roberts 2nd Lt John W. Rogers Sr.
Graduating Cadet Class – Single Engine Section – SE-42-H – September 6, 1942 2nd Lt Samuel M. Bruce, killed in action January 27, 1944 2nd Lt Richard C. Caesar 2nd Lt Robert W. Deiz 2nd Lt Joseph Elsberry, listed as Joseph D. Elsberry 2nd Lt Wilmore B. Leonard, known professionally as 'W.B. Leonard' 2nd Lt James L. McCullin, killed on July 2, 1943. 2nd Lt John H. Morgan 2nd Lt Henry B. Perry 2nd Lt Edward L. Toppins
Graduating Cadet Class – Single Engine Section – SE-42-I – October 9, 1942 2nd Lt Nathaniel M. Hill, killed 1943 in a plane crash in thick fog with weather officer and 2nd Lt. Luther L. Blakeney 2nd Lt Herman A. Lawson 2nd Lt William T. Mattison, killed January 28, 1951 piloting U.S. Air Force C-45F "Expeditor" #44-87287 in a weather-related crash near Oak Harbor, Ohio.American Air Museum in Britain. "William T Mattison, Military." http://www.americanairmuseum.com/person/241743 2nd Lt Price D. Rice 2nd Lt Andrew D. Turner
Graduating Cadet Class – Single Engine Section – SE-42-J – November 10, 1942 2nd Lt Howard Baugh 2nd Lt Terry J. Charlton Jr., listed as Terry J. Charlton 2nd Lt Jerome Edwards, listed as Jerome T. Edwards 2nd Lt Melvin T. Jackson
Graduating Cadet Class – Single Engine Section – SE-42-K – December 13, 1942 2nd Lt Edward C. Gleed 2nd Lt Milton T. Hall, killed September 18, 1947 when his AT-6 plane collided with another plane during practice exercise. 2nd Lt Wendell O. Pruitt 2nd Lt Richard C. Pulliam 2nd Lt Robert B. Tresville Jr. 2nd Lt Peter C. Verwayne, killed June 3, 1958 in East Farmingdale, New York in aircraft accident 2nd Lt William H. Walker, killed in mid-air collision with 2nd Lt. LeRoi S, Williams on October 14, 1943, near Selfridge Field, Michigan (This is not accurate, Lt. William H. Walker was not killed in air see foot note number 64) HR0232 90th General Assembly 2nd Lt Romeo M. Williams
Graduating Cadet Class – Single Engine Section – SE-43-A – January 13, 1943 2nd Lt Andrew Maples Jr., missing in action June 26, 1944 over the Adriatic Sea while serving in combat with the 301st Fighter Squadron. 2nd Lt George T. McCrumby, declared dead February 29, 1944 after air crash in the Mediterranean 2nd Lt Armour G. McDaniel 2nd Lt Clinton B. Mills 2nd Lt Charles R. Stanton 2nd Lt Quitman C. Walker, declared dead on November 19, 1944. Incident location: Hungary.
Graduating Cadet Class – Single Engine Section – SE-43-B – February 16, 1943 2nd Lt Walter M. Downs 2nd Lt Claude B. Govan 2nd Lt William E. Griffin 2nd Lt James R. Polkinghorne, declared missing in action on May 5, 1944; plane and body never found 2nd Lt John H. Prowell, declared dead after missing in action April 25, 1944 from convoy patrol 30 miles SSW La Cosa 2nd Lt Roy M. Spencer
Graduating Cadet Class – Single Engine Section – SE-43-C – March 25, 1943 2nd Lt. Clarence W. Allen 2nd Lt. Leroy Bowman 2nd Lt. Woodrow Crockett, listed as Woodrow W. Crockett 2nd Lt. Alfonza W. Davis 2nd Lt. Lawrence Dickson, listed as Lawrence E. Dickson 2nd Lt. Alwayne M. Dunlap, killed on February 21, 1944, when his aircraft overshot a landing strip on a beachhead in Anzio, Italy, crashing. 2nd Lt. Elmer A. Gordon 2nd Lt. William M. Gordon 2nd Lt. Clarence F. Jamerson 2nd Lt. Walter L. McCreary 2nd Lt. Pearlee E. Sanders 2nd Lt. Wilmeth Sidat-Singh 2nd Lt. Lloyd G. Singletary
Graduating Cadet Class – Single Engine Section – SE-43-D – April 29, 1943 2nd Lt. Paul Adams 2nd Lt. Charles P. Bailey 2nd Lt. James E. Brothers 2nd Lt. James Y. Carter 2nd Lt. Arnold W. Cisco, killed on May 19, 1946, when his transport plane hit power lines during a storm, crashing near Tuskegee, Alabama 2nd Lt. Wilson V. Eagleson 2nd Lt. William J. Faulkner , presumed dead after crashing over Austria on November 6, 1944 2nd Lt. Walter T. Foreman 2nd Lt. Vernon V. Haywood 2nd Lt. Heber C. Houston 2nd Lt. Freddie E. Hutchins 2nd Lt. Leonard M. Jackson 2nd Lt. Sidney J. Mosley 2nd Lt. Curtis C. Robinson 2nd Lt. Harold E. Sawyer 2nd Lt. Lewis C. Smith 2nd Lt. Ulysses S. Taylor 2nd Lt. Luke J. Weathers 2nd Lt. Charles L. Williams
Graduating Cadet Class – Single Engine Section – SE-43-E – May 28, 1943 2nd Lt John F. Briggs 2nd Lt Milton R Brooks 2nd Lt Charles M. Bussey 2nd Lt Spurgeon N. Ellington 2nd Lt Maurice V. Esters, declared dead after forced to bail from his plane over the Adriatic Sea when his engine failed on June 26, 1944 2nd Lt Clemenceau M. Giving, drowned in Naples Harbor in Italy on March 18, 1944, after bailing from mechanically failing aircraft; became tangled in his parachute causing him to drown; body recovered by an Italian fisherman 2nd Lt Joseph P. Gomer 2nd Lt George E Gray, killed April 5, 1951 in Pyongyang, North Korea during a combat aerial firing pass at extremely close range; aircraft struck the ground, exploded and disintegrated. 2nd Lt John L. Hamilton 2nd Lt Langdon E. Johnson, killed on August 12, 1944, when his aircraft was hit by flak after strafing enemy radar stations at Marseilles, France; crashed into sea 2nd Lt Felix J. Kirkpatrick 2nd Lt Albert H. Manning 2nd Lt Oliver O. Miller 2nd Lt Dempsey W. Morgan 2nd Lt Harry A. Sheppard 2nd Lt Luther H. Smith 2nd Lt John J. Suggs 2nd Lt James A. Walker
Graduating Cadet Class – Single Engine Section – SE-43-F – June 30, 1943 2nd Lt. Robert R. Alexander 2nd Lt. Alexander M. Bright 2nd Lt. Weldon K. Groves 2nd Lt. Charles McGee, listed as Charles E McGee 2nd Lt. Herbert S Harris 2nd Lt. Richard H. Harris 2nd Lt. Milton R. Henry 2nd Lt. Willie S. Hunter 2nd Lt. Wilbert H. Johnson 2nd Lt. Oscar A. Kenney, killed in action, son of prominent physician, John A. Kenney Sr. 2nd Lt. Lacy Hezekiah 2nd Lt. Joe A. Lewis
Graduating Cadet Class – Single Engine Section – SE-43-G – July 28, 1943 2nd Lt. Lee Archer 2nd Lt. Harry L. Bailey 2nd Lt. William Bartley 2nd Lt. Raymond Cassagnol, Haitian cadet 2nd Lt. Samuel L. Curtis 2nd Lt. John Daniels 2nd Lt. William B. Ellis 2nd Lt. William W. Green Jr. 2nd Lt. George B. Greenlee Jr 2nd Lt. Richard W. Hall (“Dopey” Hall). Not to be confused with DOTA Richard Hall, Chief Master Sergeant 2nd Lt. Jack D Holsclaw 2nd Lt. Daniel "Chappie" James Jr., listed as Daniel James Jr. 2nd Lt. John H. Leahr 2nd Lt. Claybourne A. Lockett 2nd Lt. James W. Mason 2nd Lt. Eddie McLaurin 2nd Lt. William R. Melton 2nd Lt. Robert H Nelson 2nd Lt. Maurice R. Page 2nd Lt. G. Rogers 2nd Lt. Edward M. Smith 2nd Lt. Lowell Steward, listed as Lowell C. Steward 2nd Lt. Edward W. Taylor 2nd Lt. Alva Temple 2nd Lt. Walter D. Westmoreland, killed on October 13, 1944; plane shot down by enemy ground fire near Lake Balaton, Hungary 2nd Lt. Robert H. Wiggins, killed during escort mission to Vienna, Austria oil refinery on Oct. 7, 1944; plane hit by anti-aircraft fire; eventually crashed in the Adriatic Sea. 2nd Lt. LeRoi S. Williams, killed in mid-air collision with 2nd Lt William H. Walker on October 14, 1943, near Selfridge Field, Michigan; brother of Tuskegee Airmen cadet graduate Eugene Williams 2nd Lt. Beryl Wyatt, killed April 18, 1944 when his plane crashed after an attempted landing.
Graduating Cadet Class – Single Engine Section – SE-43-H – August 30, 1943 2nd Lt Alton F Ballard 2nd Lt Hubron R. Blackwell 2nd Lt Everett A. Bratcher 2nd Lt Harry J. Daniels, declared dead after non-hostile aerial crash in Italy on May 18, 1945. 2nd Lt Andrew H. Doswell 2nd Lt Charles A. Dunne 2nd Lt Smith W. Green 2nd Lt William E. Hill 2nd Lt Lawrence B. Jefferson 2nd Lt Samuel Jefferson, presumed dead after aircraft crashed near Corsica on June 24, 1944. 2nd Lt Hubert L. Jones 2nd Lt William B. McClenic Jr. Alix Pasquet, Haitian Cadet 2nd Lt Starling B. Penn 2nd Lt Leon Purchase 2nd Lt Roger Romine 2nd Lt Norvel Stoudmire, killed March 31, 1944, when his parachute got snagged after his plane caught fire during a harbor patrol mission in Italy. 2nd Lt Charles W. Tate