By Alabama Public Radio
Orlando, FL – The legendary Tuskegee Airmen are gathering in Orlando for their 34th annual convention. The Airmen were an elite group of young black men. They were heroes of World War Two. The Tuskegee squadron ran circles around other crews above Europe. They never lost a plane under escort to enemy fighters. Some German pilots just stopped pursuing American planes that were escorted by the squadron. 85-year-old First Lieutenant Wilson Eagleson remembers when shrapnel blew through his fighter plane during combat 60 years ago. Eagleson says failure was not an option for the Tuskegee Airmen. But their numbers are shrinking. Only 200 of the 1,000 who won their wings in Alabama are still alive, and only about 80 came to the convention.