Surviving Area Tuskegee Airmen Reunite

Sixty-six years ago, William Fuller Jr. returned home to Detroit after serving three years in the U.S. Air Force as a pilot in the 302d Fighter Squadron. As part of the group of the first African-American aviators in the U.S. military, popularly known as the Tuskegee Airmen, he had had to deal with racial segregation and discrimination in training before eventually flying with distinction.

Fuller was part of a group of 12 surviving Tuskegee Airmen living in Metro Detroit honored by the Oakland County Board of Commissioners at its meeting Wednesday in Pontiac.

Tuskegee Airmen refers to all the people who were involved in the so-called "Tuskegee Experiment," the Army Air Corps program that began in 1941 to train African Americans to fly and maintain combat aircraft.

The group honored Wednesday includes:

• P.T. Cochran of Farmington Hills
• 2nd Lt. Matthew Corbin of Farmington Hills
• Warrant Junior Officer Burkes B. Esaw Sr.
• John Cunningham of Garden City
• Frederick L. Henry Sr. of Detroit
• Private First Class William Horton Thompson
• Lt. Col. Harry Stewart Jr. of Bloomfield Hills
• Maj. Richard Jennings of Detroit
• Lt. Col. U.S.A.F. Reserve Alexander Jefferson of Southfield
• Lt. Col. Washington DuBois Ross of Southfield
• Staff Sgt. Sandy Reid of Southfield
• William Fuller Jr., a flight officer who lives in West Bloomfield.

For many years, Fuller thought the greatest recognition he would receive as a Tuskegee Airman would have come from his wife, Barbara. The two met after he returned home from duty in Italy in 1946 and he impressed her in his pilot's uniform. (They'll celebrate their 64th anniversary in June.)

"When we were doing what we did, it was so downplayed that we felt like we hadn’t done anything," Fuller said. "We just didn’t feel that during the time it was taking place that it was anything special. It turned out that this is inspiring for a lot of people. We were determined people who didn't want to let what was going on at the time come between us and what we wanted to do."

Cochran, a 92-year-old former cadet, was satisfied with the honors. "Of course, I'm not sure if anyone realized at the time that we'd be back here together teaching others. I think it's an honor to be recognized for teaching as well as serving and we were overwhelmed when we were invited," he said.

Corbin said that he was about to be deployed with the 332d Fighter Group before the war ended in 1945, never seeing combat, but he did train with the group. The 90-year-old said that as time goes on, the need grows greater for the story to be heard.

"Having gone through segregation, it’s something you hope the next generations never have to go through. Pretty soon, we’ll all be gone, the originals anyway. The youngest is about 86 years old, so we’re dying out," he said. "The more we're around, the more the story can be told."

Debra Watkins and son Tyler, 13, of Pontiac, were among an interested crowd that nearly filled the Commissioners' Auditorium as proclamations were issued in honor of the men. Originally from Alabama, with deep roots at Tuskegee University, Watkins said the event represented "progress."

"Their story isn't something you're used to hearing about in school, so I think it's a long time coming," said Watkins, who added that several family members graduated from Tuskegee outside of the military. "For me, it represents progress. Experience is the best teacher. It makes you appreciate those who came before you and the sacrifices they made."