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By Staff Sgt. Carlos Diaz
U.S. Central Command Air Forces
AL ASAD AIR BASE, Iraq – Tech. Sgt. Jeanne Johnson has had the "Airmen Spirit" in her blood since before she was born.
Johnson's lineage can be traced back to the Tuskegee Airmen, a group of African American pilots who flew during World War II as members of the 332nd Fighter Group in the Army Air Corps.
Johnson's grandmother is cousin to a Tuskegee Airmen, 85-year-old Leroy Bowman. She met Mr. Bowman at a 2002 family reunion.
"It was exciting to meet him," Johnson said. "He was a flyer who flew 36 missions in the P-40, P-47 and P-51 aircraft."
"My mother has a lot of prominent people in her family, and she's very involved in our family's history," she added.
Soon after realizing her daughter was deployed to a squadron that falls under the 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing, Johnson's mother quickly put her in contact with their famous family member.
The 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing is the legacy of the famous Tuskegee Airmen, 332nd Fighter Group in World War II. Today, its mission and traditions are being carried out by a different generation of Airmen.
At the time of the call, Mr. Bowman was traveling to Washington D.C., where President Bush presented him and approximately 350 other Tuskegee Airmen and their widows with the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian award bestowed by Congress.
"It's so cool knowing him and his wife," she said. "He's a nice person."
Johnson is a 13-year Air Force member who was born into the military. Her father was a soldier for 22 years and retired as a sergeant major, the Army's highest enlisted rank.
She bursts with pride when she speaks of her family tree.
"I'm so proud of my family," she said. "It makes me want to strive to reach their similar successes."
Johnson is deployed to the 438th Expeditionary Aircraft Maintenance Squadron from the 43rd Maintenance Squadron at Pope Air Force Base, N.C.
She's a nondestructive inspection craftsman, assigned to the Joint Oil Analysis Program Lab. There she employs a Spectroil Monitor Machine to analyze the wear elements in the oil of an A-10 Thunderbolt II.
Her careful attention-to-detail and thorough inspections allow for the best oil possible to keep the aircraft flying and performing its close air support mission.
Work ethic and family pride drive her to excel in other areas, such as volunteerism.
"I'm a member of Toastmasters and the base honor guard. During my off time, I volunteer to re-stock the base shopping area. It's cool and it keeps me busy."
Johnson's duty time is spent with Airmen who exemplify a family atmosphere.
"The camaraderie is just awesome," she expressed. "Everyone has a good attitude and loves working on the aircraft."
"I just met them during this deployment," she added. "Everyone from top leadership to the youngest Airman works very hard and excels at the mission."
Excelling at the mission is something Johnson's descendants and immediate family members know all too well.
| Date Taken: | 05.15.2007 |
| Date Posted: | 05.15.2007 10:11 |
| Story ID: | 10384 |
| Location: | AL ASAD, IQ |
| Web Views: | 78 |
| Downloads: | 15 |
This work, Tuskegee Airmen descendant enjoys mission, deployment, by SSgt Carlos Diaz, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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