Homer Hogues, One of the Last Tuskegee Airmen, Dead at 96
Texas native Homer Hogues died this week — just days after his wife of over 70 years died on Sunday
U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Joseph A. Pagán Jr.
Homer Hogues.Homer Hogues, one of the last living Tuskegee Airmen, died this week, just two days after his wife, according to his obituary. He was 96.
Hogues, a Texas native who enlisted in the United States military and later achieved the rank of staff sergeant while working as an aircraft mechanic for one of the first units of Black military pilots, died on Tuesday.
His wife, Mattie Bell, died just days before on Sunday. The couple had been married for over 70 years.
According to the National Museum of African American History and Culture, Hogues joined the Army Air Corps in 1946 and flew with the 99th Pursuit Squadron and 332nd Fighter Group during World War II.
"Throughout his life, Hogues was an active representative of the Tuskegee Airmen, giving countless speeches and interviews about his military service," the museum said Thursday.
As Hogues told the Dallas Morning News in 2016, he struggled to find his dream job with an airline after leaving the military.
Instead, he worked on cars and eventually retired after 47 years of service as an electro-plater for Lane Plating Works, according to the report and obituary.
"They said the only thing I could do was gut the planes and sweep the floors and all that kind of stuff," he told the paper. "I thought that was a slap in the face."
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However, recognition would eventually follow. He was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal in 2010, and he was invited to President Barack Obama's second inauguration two years later.
"Homer was soft spoken and kindhearted and loved by many," his obituary reads. "He spent a brief time in a nursing home but was blessed to return home with the assistance of various community and military groups."
Hogues is survived by his three daughters, 10 grandchildren and more than a dozen great-grandchildren, along with "a host of nieces, nephews, adopted children, and friends," his obituary states.
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