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Boeing US Freedom Pavilion
The pairing of the legendary Merlin engine and the P-51 Mustang eventually resulted in the P-51D, which provided the US Army Air Forces’ with a high-performance, high-altitude, long range fighter that could escort heavy bomber formations all the way to Berlin and back. The changes significantly reduced the unacceptable loss rates bomber crews had suffered since the daylight bombing campaign began in the summer of 1942. Between 1941 and 1946, roughly 1,000 African American pilots were trained at a segregated air base in Tuskegee, Alabama. The most famous of the Tuskegee Airmen were the 332nd Fighter Group, also known as the “Red Tails” for the distinctive markings of their planes. The 99th Pursuit Squadron, later renamed the 99th Fighter Squadron, also distinguished themselves in combat. Together they flew more than 15,000 sorties and lost 66 men in the line of duty. This aircraft is painted in the markings of one of the aircraft known to have been flown by the squadron.
Boeing US Freedom Pavilion
The pairing of the legendary Merlin engine and the P-51 Mustang eventually resulted in the P-51D, which provided the US Army Air Forces’ with a high-performance, high-altitude, long range fighter that could escort heavy bomber formations all the way to Berlin and back. The changes significantly reduced the unacceptable loss rates bomber crews had suffered since the daylight bombing campaign began in the summer of 1942. Between 1941 and 1946, roughly 1,000 African American pilots were trained at a segregated air base in Tuskegee, Alabama. The most famous of the Tuskegee Airmen were the 332nd Fighter Group, also known as the “Red Tails” for the distinctive markings of their planes. The 99th Pursuit Squadron, later renamed the 99th Fighter Squadron, also distinguished themselves in combat. Together they flew more than 15,000 sorties and lost 66 men in the line of duty. This aircraft is painted in the markings of one of the aircraft known to have been flown by the squadron.