07 August 2022

James Shipley — One of the Tuskegee Airmen

He died recently at the age of 99. James Shipley, one of the last surviving Tuskegee Airmen, laid to rest

Shipley was born on June 29, 1923, in Tipton, Missouri, and had a lifelong dream of becoming a mechanic.

When he was 19 years old, he voluntarily joined the Black Army Air Corps. He completed his basic training at the Tuskegee Institute in Tuskegee, Alabama. He later enrolled in an aircraft mechanic school in Lincoln, Nebraska, where he learned how to rebuild and assemble various parts of an airplane. He furthered his education in Detroit, Michigan.

Mr. Shipley is survived by:

...his wife of 73 years, Mildred, three children, eight grandchildren and 10 great grandchildren.

There are a couple of movies about the Tuskegee Airmen. One was a TV movie (I believe it was PBS, but I am not sure) from the mid 1990s. The other was a theatrical release from 2012. I haven't seen either one in quite a few years, but I think I preferred the PBS version staring Laurence Fishburne.

Either one is an entertaining way of learning a bit of history.

1 comment:

  1. "Black" Army Air Corps? Not the US Army Air Corps?

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