Tuskegee Airman to address Charleston air squadron - Live5News.com | Charleston, SC | News, Weather, Sports

JOINT BASE CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) - Tuskegee Airman and retired Air Force Lt. Col. Hiram Mann is visiting the 16th Airlift Squadron at Joint Base Charleston.

Mann is scheduled to address men and women of the squadron and take questions on Friday.

Mann was 1 of the first black servicemen to be trained by the Army Air Force as a military pilot. As part of the 332nd Fighter Group known as the Red Tails, Mann flew 48 World War II combat missions.

Before 1940, African-Americans were barred from flying for the U.S. military. Civil rights organizations pressed for the formation of a black squadron, which was based in Tuskegee, Ala, in 1941. The squadron became known and distinguished themselves as the Tuskegee Airmen.

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