Wings for this Man is a propaganda film produced in 1945 by the U.S. Army Air Forces First Motion Picture Unit about the Tuskegee Airmen, the first unit of African-American pilots in the US military. It’s narrated by Ronald Reagan.
Beginning with dramatic footage of aerial combat over Italy, showing an outnumbered American squadron successfully dogfighting aLuftwaffe formation, the picture tells the story of the Tuskegee Airmen, starting with the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama and the founding of the airstrip near it. The narrator notes that the airmen had to overcome exceeding odds to get the unit created and notes that “there was misunderstanding, distrust and prejudice that had to be cleared away” before the unit could form.
While not explicitly mentioning racism the narration does go further than most wartime propaganda stating that “one thing was proved here: that you can’t judge a man by the color of his eyes or the shape of his nose” and that “these men were pioneers, and pioneers never have it easy”.
For additional information on the history of the Tuskegee Airmen visit:
