Tuskegee Airman speaks to Aviano Airmen

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Carole Steele
  • 31st Fighter Wing Public Affairs
African American pioneer, WWII fighter ace, successful venture capitalist -- Retired Lt. Col. Lee “Buddy” Archer, Jr., has packed a lot into his 85 years.

As an official Air Force speaker, he traveled to Aviano last week to attend several African American History Month events.

As the guest of honor at a breakfast Feb. 17 in the La Bella Vista Club, he spoke to a full house about his 29 plus years in the military, the struggles of the Tuskegee Airmen, his highly-successful civilian career, and passed on words of advice to today’s Airmen.

His story begins as a young man growing up in Harlem, New York, where he was rarely subjected to segregation. After high school, he attended NYU up until his sophomore year when he enlisted to serve his country in 1941 before WWII began.

A fan of WWI aviation, his goal was to become a pilot.

“I became ridiculously active about it but I didn’t know in the beginning that there was a law restricting African Americans being in the Army Air Corp,” said Colonel Archer.

This he discovered after enlisting. He was made an Army private in the infantry and went to boot camp at Camp Upton on Long Island, N.Y.

“All of us, black and white, trained together,” he said. “Then they sent us to different bases and 200-300 of us were sent to Camp Wheeler in Macon, Ga.

“We all got on the train together, we laughed, we joked, we traveled together until we reached Washington, D.C., the capital of the country,” he said.

That’s when many of the New Englanders got the surprise of their life. The group was taken off the train, separated by race and segregate in different cars.

“It was the first shock I ever had like that and, incidentally, it was for a lot of other people on that train. A white fellow I was with was more shocked than I was. He was about to get in trouble saying ‘Why should this happen?’ But that was it.’”

By the time the group reached Macon, Ga., they found themselves in the center of a segregation that reached even to the base.

“It was a horrendous period. And if that didn’t change us, it was proof that nothing would. We still went and tried to do the best job we could,” said Colonel Archer.

During that time, the president ordered the Army Air Corp to conduct an ‘experiment’ to see if African American men could be trained to become pilots. That was the birth of the Tuskegee Airmen, of which Colonel Archer was one of the first of more than 1,000 African Americans who would earn their wings during the 1940s.

Forecast to be a failure, the Tuskegee Airmen were extremely successful.

Then came the second hurdle.

“After they trained us, they didn’t want to send us to combat,” said the colonel. “We persisted until they finally sent us and we were deeply successful. Our record stands with anyone else in the military.”

During WWII, the Tuskegee Airmen garnered countless decorations, including 150 distinguished flying crosses and 744 Air Medals, and carried the distinction of being the only unit to not lose a single bomber to enemy fire under its escort.

After the war, the Tuskegee Airmen returned home to a still-segregated America. Then on July 28, 1948, the president signed Executive Order 9981 that integrated the military.

“I am proud to say that the Air Force [integrated] immediately,” said the colonel. “The other services took some time, some up to three years. But the Air Force was the leader in giving equal opportunity and equal treatment to people of other ethnic or racial backgrounds.”

Something else Colonel Archer returned to was Ina, a girl he had met in Macon. Her father had denied his request to marry her until he returned from the war, not wanting his daughter to become a widow at 17. The aircraft that Colonel Archer flew during the war, which is still flying today, was named ‘Ina the Macon Belle.’

He and his belle were married for 54 years “before she did the unforgivable,” said Colonel Archer, “She died before me. But we had four wonderful kids and five grandchildren.

“If anybody judges me and my life in the future, I hope they judge me for the kind of kids I raised, cause I’ll make out like a bandit,” said the proud patriarch.

He’s also proud of his civilian career. After flying more than 3,500 hours in four different aircraft, and a rise from Army private to Air Force lieutenant colonel, he retired and moved just as strongly and swiftly through the civilian sector.

Starting at General Foods, which also sent him back to school at UCLA, he worked his way up to the pinnacle of the financial world.

“I have had a really remarkable career,” said Colonel Archer. “I bought companies for the company and, as a sideline, I helped 74 African American companies start businesses.”

After being CEO of several very successful businesses, he ended up running one of the largest venture capital companies in the country.

His advice to those now serving?

“Two things,” he said. “Patriotism is the first thing. You have an obligation to do the best you can for your country, especially when your country is in trouble.

“Second, lead the way for people coming behind you. You lead the way by first getting a good education. There’s nothing better than being well-educated and experienced. The basis you’re forming now will be what you build on later in your life.”

As for the only fighter ace among the Tuskegee Airman, Colonel Archer came full circle in 2006. He recently made two trips to Iraq where he met with the 332nd Fighter Expeditionary Wing in Balad, formerly the 332nd Fighter Group that he served in during WWII.

“It was amazing standing in front of this group in Iraq,” he said. “This is what I hoped for in 1941; 3,000 men and women of every race and ethnicity and they were fighting as one group. All of them were doing any job and their assignment was based on their capabilities. And as far as I was concerned, it was the fulfillment of the wildest dream in the world; a perfect ending.”