Tuskegee Airmen Honored at Namesake Depot

FEBRUARY 17, 2020 – The Tuskegee Airmen – a now legendary group of African-American pilots who served in WWII with the 332nd Fighter Group and the 477th Bombardment Group and then became TWU Local 100 members after joining NYCT, were honored in a ceremony at the Bus Depot named for them in Harlem.
The ceremony was set up by the NYC Transit Veterans Employee Resource Group.

Also on hand were TWU Local 100 Veterans Committee Vice Chair Ron Gregory and Recording Secretary Joe DiPaola. The Black History Month event also featured former Congressman Charlie Rangel, whose good friend and former Manhattan Borough President Percy Sutton was one of the Airmen. Formerly known as the 100th Street Bus Depot, the facility was renamed the Tuskegee Airmen Bus Depot in 2012.

Here are the Airmen who subsequently worked for transit:
Reginald T. Brewster – Joined the NYCBOT as a clerk in 1948 while attending law school.
Victor A. Collymore – Worked for NYCBOT from 1947 to 1952.
Conrad A. DeSandies – Worked for NYC Transit in 1959 as a maintainer’s helper.
Harry R. Dickenson – Worked for NYC Transit from 1984 to 1989 as deputy chief engineer.
John R. Freeman – Retired as a manager, Operating Authority (OA) Surface.
Noel R. Harris – Began his career at NYCBOT in 1948 as an auditor for the Staten Island Depot.
Oscar W. Hawkins – Joined NYCBOT in 1949, holding titles of towerman, train dispatcher, train master, superintendent of Operations and Transportation before moving to Labor Relations in 1971. He retired from NYC Transit in 1987.
Austin D. McKenzie – Retired as an assistant train dispatcher in 1970.
Maury M. Reid, Jr. – Joined NYCBOT in 1948 as a railroad clerk. He transferred to Rapid Transit Operations and became the director of the RTO Training School, retiring as an assistant director, Office of Labor Relations.
Percy E. Sutton – Worked for NYCBOT from 1948 to 1953 as a subway conductor, token clerk, and waiter while attending law school.
Victor W. Terrelonge – Joined NYCBOT as a trolley motorman out of Coney Island. He advanced through the ranks of NYC Transit, retiring in 1984 as a safety coordinator. From 1984 to 2003, he served as a safety consultant to the Legal Department.
Fred O. Wilson – Joined NYCBOT in 1945 as a street car operator and retired as a bus operator from the Jamaica Bus Depot in 1