Flew In The European Campaign During WWII

Another of the storied Tuskegee Airmen has Gone West. Lt. Col. Leo Gray, one of the original members of the unit, passed away at his home in Coconut Creek, FL on Friday. He was 92.

The Sun-Sentinel newspaper reports that Gray had been born in Boston and entered the military after high school. He began flight training in 1942 at Tuskegee Army Airfield, and was listed as active duty a year later.

Gray was stationed in Italy, and flew 15 combat missions as part of the 100th Fighter Squadron, 332nd Fighter Group in the signature Red Tail P-51 Mustangs assigned to the unit. Overall, he logged about 750 hours, but did not record any victories during his missions.

He rose to the rank of Lt. Colonel.

After the war, he earned bachelor's and master's degrees, and worked for the U.S. Department of Agriculture until he retired in 1984.

In 2013, he was recognized by the Broward Sheriff's Office, along with two others, for serving their country while fighting bigotry and racism.

(Public Domain image)

FMI: http://tuskegeeairmen.org