On Freedom’s Wings: Bound For Glory

 The Legacy of the Tuskegee Airmen

Film Summary

“On Freedom’s Wings, Bound for Glory” is the story of the Tuskegee Airmen, a WWII Army Air Corps “experimental” program to train and commission African-American aviators during a time when all U.S. Armed Forces were racially segregated. So-called because their flight school was located at a small base in Tuskegee, Alabama, the Tuskegee Airmen would encounter numerous obstacles as they broke military color barriers, debunking long-time, deeply held beliefs that blacks could not be skilled combat fighter pilots. This small band of daring pilots would eventually make U.S. Military Aviation history, never losing an American bomber they were assigned to protect against German fighters in 200 missions. During the closing months of WWII in Europe, the distinctive “Red Tail Mustangs” flown by the Tuskegee Airmen became legendary, a welcome sight for beleaguered American bomber crews who were being shot down at an alarming rate. The one-hour film opens current day, in Balad, Iraq, where the 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing is headquartered, and closes with the 2007 presentation of the Congressional Gold Medal by President George Bush.