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“ON THE DEATH OF BENJAMIN O. DAVIS JR.” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Transportation was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E1271 on July 16, 2002.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
ON THE DEATH OF BENJAMIN O. DAVIS JR.
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HON. CHARLES B. RANGEL
of new york
in the house of representatives
Tuesday, July 16, 2002
Mr. RANGEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise to mourn the passing of General Benjamin O. Davis, Jr., who was born on December 18, 1912, and died on July 4, 2002 at the age of 89. General Davis was buried at Arlington Cemetery with full military honors.
General Davis was an American hero, who through his leadership of the legendary Tuskegee Airmen, helped to dispel the myths about the ability of African-Americans to successfully engage in combat and specifically to master the complexities of flying and maintaining aircraft.
He was the first black graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point in the 20th Century. When Davis was commissioned as a second lieutenant in 1936, the Army had had a total of two black officers, Benjamin O. Davis Senior and Benjamin O. Davis, Jr.
While at West Point, Davis applied for entry to the Army Air Corps, but was rejected. He later attended the Army's Infantry School at Fort Benning, and taught military tactics at Tuskegee Institute. Diverting Davis from the Air Corps was the Army's way of avoiding having a black officer command white soldiers, in a time when segregation prevailed and black troops had little hope for promotion.
In 1941, as wartime approached, an all-black flying unit was created, and Captain Davis was assigned to the first training class at Tuskegee Army Air Field in Alabama. In March of 1942, Benjamin O. Davis won his wings and became one of five black officers to complete the course. In July of the same year, Davis was promoted to lieutenant colonel and was named commander of the first all black air unit known as the 99th Pursuit Squadron.
In the spring of 1943, the 99th Pursuit Squadron went to North Africa, where they saw combat for the first time on June 2. By summer, the 99th were flying missions to support the invasion of Sicily. In the fall, Colonel Davis returned to the United States to command the 332nd Fighter Group, an even larger all black unit preparing to make the trip overseas. it was about this time when Top Brass recommended that the 99th be removed from tactical operations for poor performance. Colonel Davis held a news conference at the Pentagon to defend his men. Although they were permitted to continue fighting, a top-level inquiry ensued. Questions about the squadron were put to rest in January 1944, when its pilots downed 12 German fighter planes over the Anzio beach in Italy.
Colonel Davis and the 332nd arrived in Italy shortly after that. They were based at Ramitelli and came to be known as the Red Tails for the distinctive marking on their planes. The four-squadron unit accumulated a successful record of missions flown deep into German territory.
General Benjamin O. Davis was a highly decorated leader of dozens of missions in P-47 Thunderbolts and P-51 Mustangs. He received the Silver Star for a strafing run into Austria, and the Distinguished Flying Cross for a bomber escort mission into Munich. General Davis went on to lead the all black 477th Bombardment Group, which compiled an exemplary combat record.
When General Davis retired from the military in 1970, he became the Director of Public Safety in Cleveland. Later he joined the United States Department of Transportation, directing anti-hijacking efforts. In his five years with the department he supervised the sky marshal program, airport security and a program to stop cargo theft. In 1998 President Bill Clinton awarded General Benjamin O. Davis a fourth star, the military's highest peacetime rank.
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