Flying A Piece Of History

History lessons come from books, teachers and, every now and then, from touching a piece of ancient history. In 2002, I flew in a piece of history—a World War II, open-cockpit, Stearman biplane that was slow, noisy and absolutely beautiful. (Before I get too carried away, let me admit that I have never been checked out in a Stearman so flew that day with a CFI.) This particular Stearman was a bit of history in and of itself. During World War II, it was based in Tuskegee, AL, where it was used to train a group of people you just might have heard of—the famed group of black pilots known as the Tuskegee Airmen. Several of the Tuskegee Airmen were still around when I worked for Montgomery Aviation. One of them, “Chief†Anderson, came by frequently and was later inducted into the Alabama Aviation Hall of Fame. Years later, I served on a planning committee for the Hall-of-Fame induction ceremony, and one of our inductees that year was General Benjamin O. Davis, Jr. General Davis was also a Tuskegee Airman, a graduate of West Point, and one more fine looking fellow even more than 50 years later. I helped write his introduction and was proud to play that small role in his induction. Tuskegee and Alabama can be proud of the Tuskegee and the Tuskegee Airmen. And I am proud to have flown in that Stearman. We’d love to post your comments. Please click the comment tab at the top.