First Lieutenant Robert L. Martin (9 February 1919 – 26 July 2018) was a

Tuskegee Airman The Tuskegee Airmen were a group of primarily African American military pilots (fighter and bomber) and airmen who fought in World War II. They formed the 332d Fighter Group and the 477th Bombardment Group (Medium) of the United States Arm ...

active during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. His aircraft was shot down after a raid on an airfield in

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label= Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavij ...

. He was a recipient of the Distinguished Flying Cross.

Early life

Robert L. Martin was born in

Dubuque Dubuque (, ) is the county seat of Dubuque County, Iowa, United States, located along the Mississippi River. At the time of the 2020 census, the population of Dubuque was 59,667. The city lies at the junction of Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin, a ...

Iowa Iowa () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wiscon ...

on 9 February 1919. His mother died shortly after his birth. His father, Henry Martin, was a chiropedis (now more widely knowns as a podiatrist). When he attended an air show as a 13-year-old Boy Scout, he was inspired to become a pilot. He graduated from Dubuque Senior High School, class of 1936. While still a student at

Iowa State University Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a public land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricultural College and Model Farm, Iowa State became one of th ...

, Martin learned to fly in a civilian pilot training program. In 1942, he graduated with a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering.

Tuskegee

On 7 January 1944, at the age of 23, Martin graduated from flight training at the Tuskegee Army Air Field in

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = " Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,7 ...

. He was a member of the 100th Fighter Squadron and the 332nd Fighter Group. Martin explained that Tuskegee was "segregated where they wanted it," meaning students, ground crews, mechanics, medics and quartermasters were all black. Senior personnel instructors were all white, and acted almost like "gods." Shortly after completing his training Martin was deployed to Italy. He likes to say he flew "63 and a half" combat missions during World War II. On 9 December 1944, Martin was returning to base from an escort mission when his

P-51 Mustang The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is an American long-range, single-seat fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II and the Korean War, among other conflicts. The Mustang was designed in April 1940 by a team headed by James ...

suffered engine trouble. He was forced to land at a gunnery range Cuetelo, Italy. As the plane fell over the rough ground, the propeller was damaged. Martin was able to walk away from the crash landing. In March 1945, in what would have been his 64th mission, Martin was "cut down by ground fire" after an attack mission on an enemy airfield in

Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slop ...

, Yugoslavia. In his own words, Martin explained that seven other pilots and himself were attempting to shoot two airplanes parked a little bit off a field. They missed their target, and were blown off course by . Martin felt a bump in his airplane and realized he had been hit. The engine caught on fire and Martin was forced to bail. When his parachute opened it cut him on the chin and knocked him out. Martin found shelter in a farmhouse. He was eventually rescued and taken into the headquarters of Marshal

Josip Broz Tito Josip Broz ( sh-Cyrl, Јосип Броз, ; 7 May 1892 – 4 May 1980), commonly known as Tito (; sh-Cyrl, Тито, links=no, ), was a Yugoslav communist revolutionary and statesman, serving in various positions from 1943 until his death ...

's Partisans and hidden until he could safely return to his unit. He remained there for about five weeks. Following the war, Martin received his military discharge at the rank of captain.

Awards

Air Medal The Air Medal (AM) is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. It was created in 1942 and is awarded for single acts of heroism or meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight. Criteria The Air Medal was establish ...

with six

oak leaf cluster An oak leaf cluster is a ribbon device to denote preceding decorations and awards consisting of a miniature bronze or silver twig of four oak leaves with three acorns on the stem. It is authorized by the United States Armed Forces for a speci ...

s *

Congressional Gold Medal The Congressional Gold Medal is an award bestowed by the United States Congress. It is Congress's highest expression of national appreciation for distinguished achievements and contributions by individuals or institutions. The congressional pract ...

awarded to the Tuskegee Airman in 2006. * Distinguished Flying Cross *

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, ...

After the war

In 1945, Martin returned to the U.S. after

Victory in Europe Day Victory in Europe Day is the day celebrating the formal acceptance by the Allies of World War II of Germany's unconditional surrender of its armed forces on Tuesday, 8 May 1945, marking the official end of World War II in Europe in the Easte ...

. He looked for electrical engineering jobs but had a difficult time finding any; at the time, people weren't hiring black engineers. Martin held a variety of jobs including driving a taxi and working in factories. He was hired as a draftsman by the Chicago Park District, and went on to work as an electrical engineer for the city of

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

. Martin retired after 37 years. Martin was married for 68 years to the former Odette Ewell and settled in Olympia Fields, Illinois. They had four children, Gabrielle, Noelle, Dominique and Robert Martin Jr. and two grandchildren. Martin died of

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severit ...

on 26 July 2018, at the age of 99. On 21 July 2020, the

Dubuque Regional Airport Dubuque Regional Airport is a regional airport located eight miles south of Dubuque, in Dubuque County, Iowa. On U.S. Highway 61, the airport is owned by the city of Dubuque and is operated as a department of the city government. The city council ...

Commission voted unanimously to name the only terminal after Captain Robert L. Martin. A fundraising campaign was underway to build a memorial monument and provide education on site about Captain Robert Martin and Tuskegee Airmen. Ribbon cutting unveiling of the Captain Robert L. Martin occurred on Tuesday, July 19, 2022.

References

External links