618th Bombardment Squadron
Encyclopedia
The 618th Bombardment Squadron (Medium) was a U.S. Army Air Force bombardment squadron formed as part of the famed Tuskegee Airmen
Tuskegee Airmen
The Tuskegee Airmen is the popular name of a group of African American pilots who fought in World War II. Formally, they were the 332nd Fighter Group and the 477th Bombardment Group of the U.S. Army Air Corps....

.

History

The squadron's members were involved in the civil rights action referred to as the Freeman Field Mutiny
Freeman Field Mutiny
The Freeman Field Mutiny was a series of incidents at Freeman Army Airfield, a United States Army Air Forces base near Seymour, Indiana, in 1945 in which African American members of the 477th Bombardment Group attempted to integrate an all-white officers' club. The mutiny resulted in 162 separate...

; the "mutiny" came about when African-American aviators became outraged enough by racial segregation
Racial segregation
Racial segregation is the separation of humans into racial groups in daily life. It may apply to activities such as eating in a restaurant, drinking from a water fountain, using a public toilet, attending school, going to the movies, or in the rental or purchase of a home...

 in the military that they resorted to mass insistence that military regulations prohibiting discrimination be enforced. The Freeman Field Mutiny was a crucial event in the African-American struggle for equal civil rights.

Lineage

The squadron was formed originally on 13 May 1943. It was activated on 1 June 1943. It was inactivated on 25 August 1943. It was reactivated on 15 May 1944. It was inactivated for the second and final time on 8 October 1945.

Stations

  • MacDill Field, Florida: 1 June 1943 through 25 August 1943
  • Godman Field, Kentucky: 15 May through 28 August 1944
  • Atterbury Army Air Field
    Bakalar Air Force Base
    Bakalar Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force base located north-northeast of Columbus, Indiana.Opened during World War II, the base was a training base for medium-range C-46 and C-47 troop carrier planes and glider pilots. It also was used for training B-25 Mitchell and B-26...

    : 29 August 1944 through 1 March 1945
  • Freeman Field, Indiana: 2 March 1945 through 26 April 1945
  • Godman Field, Kentucky: 27 April through 8 October 1945
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