Formed at the Chanute Airfield in Rantoul in 1941, the 99th Pursuit Squadron, now more commonly known as the Tuskegee Airmen, made history as a prominent all-Black military aviation unit in World War II. To reflect on their accomplishments, the University of Illinois Department of Aerospace Engineering and student group Minorities in Aerospace is hosting a free showing of the documentary Double Victory: Tuskegee Airmen at War.
The one hour film will be shown on February 4th in the auditorium of the Campus Instructional Facility at 1405 Springfield Ave. in Urbana at 6 p.m. The viewing will be followed up with a panel leading a discussion of the film. The panel includes professor of African-American studies Ronald Bailey, Air-force Veteran and Indianapolis Tuskegee Airman Inc. chapter president Reginald DuValle, U.S. Air Force Captain Sidney Ganison, and U.S. Navy Captain Alex Hampton. The event will be following the UIUC covid guidelines which can be viewed here.
Top image from the U of I College of Engineering.