Howard Lee Baugh (January 20, 1920 – August 23, 2008) was an American military aviator who served with theTuskegee Airmen duringWorld War II.[1]
Howard Baugh was born and raised inPetersburg, Virginia, where he graduated fromVirginia State College in 1941.[2]
Baugh enlisted in the U.S. Army as an aviation cadet of theU.S. Army Air Corps in March 1942. He was accepted into a newly formed group, later known as theTuskegee Airmen, an all-black unit atTuskegee Institute in Alabama. He was commissioned a 2nd Lt. in November 1942.[3] In the group, 996 were pilots, and 450 of them were sent into combat. He flew 136 combat missions for the332nd Fighter Group,99th Fighter Squadron inSicily, Italy during World War.[4] The group was nicknamed the "Red Tails" or "Red Tail Squadron" for the red-feather markings painted on the tails of their aircraft.[2]
After World War II, Baugh continued to serve in the military as a flight instructor, commander, and director of logistics. He rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel and retired from the U.S. Air Force in 1967.[2]
Military honors accorded Baugh include:
Civilian recognition includes:
A life-size statue of Baugh, sculpted byAntonio Tobias Mendez, was unveiled in November 2018 at theBlack History Museum and Cultural Center of Virginia in Richmond, Virginia (at the formerFirst Battalion Virginia Volunteers Armory). It is the first monument in Virginia, and the eighth monument in the U.S., honoring a member of the Tuskegee Airmen. Plans for the monument include permanently locating it to Petersburg.[2][4]
Baugh was the widower of the former Constance Layne. He was survived by, among others, his sons—David P. Baugh of Richmond, Virginia,[9] Howard Layne Baugh of Norfolk, and Richard Baugh of Crownsville, Maryland —and two daughters-in-law, four grandchildren, and four great grandchildren.[1]
