Top Photo: George E. Hardy receiving The National WWII Museum's American Spirit Award in 2024. Photo: The National WWII Museum

The National WWII Museum mourns the loss of WWII veteran and dear friend George Hardy, who passed away this week at age 100. Hardy was one of the last surviving members of the trailblazing Tuskegee Airmen.

Hardy’s passing was announced Friday by the Tuskegee Airmen, Inc. National Office. 

“His legacy is one of courage, resilience, tremendous skill and dogged perseverance against racism, prejudice, and other evils,” the organization wrote in the announcement. “We are forever grateful for his sacrifice and will hold dear to his memory.” 

Hardy was born in 1925 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the second-oldest child of seven. When the Japanese forces attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, Hardy remembered being upstairs doing homework when he heard the radio broadcast of the Eagles football game being interrupted to share the news. 

His older brother had joined the US Navy in June and was serving as a cook on a destroyer in the North Atlantic. In 1943, after turning 17 years old, Hardy initially wanted to join the Navy to be with his brother, but his father refused to sign the necessary papers due to racial barriers in military roles.

Hardy later joined the US Army Air Forces, completing the Aviation Cadet Training Program at Tuskegee Army Air Field in 1944. Trained as a single-engine pilot and commissioned as a Second Lieutenant, Hardy deployed in early 1945 to Italy joining the African American 99th Fighter Squadron, 332nd Fighter Group.

George E. Hardy

He flew 21 combat missions over Germany and occupied Europe piloting P-51 Mustang aircraft, often escorting heavy bombers. The Tuskegee Airmen, Inc. National Office said that Hardy was "the youngest Red Tail fighter pilot at 19 to fly his first combat sortie over Europe."

 In his oral history interview with the Museum in 2014, Hardy recalled one mission where his plane was struck by small arms fire during a strafing run. He said he knew his plane was hit when he saw a flash of light coming through the cockpit floor, which was usually dark.

“What happened was something came through and splintered the aluminum on one side of the plane,” he recalled. “And light started coming through on my feet.”

Such hits could be dangerous, and Hardy recalled that “we lost a number of people on strafing missions.” 

Following World War II, Hardy flew 45 combat missions during the Korean War and 70 during the Vietnam War. He also earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering and a master’s in systems engineering at the US Air Force Institute of Technology in Dayton, Ohio, and worked on the Department of Defense’s first worldwide military telephone system. Hardy retired from the US Air Force in 1971 with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel after nearly 30 years of decorated service.

Hardy later became a champion of the legacy of the Tuskegee Airmen, sharing their story with students across the nation. Before the Tuskegee Airmen, no African Americans had ever served in the US military as pilots. At First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt’s insistence, the first Black fighter squadron was created in 1941. The 99th Fighter Squadron and the 332nd Fighter Group came to symbolize African American participation in World War II. Overall, the 992 Tuskegee-trained pilots and thousands more support personnel logged over 15,000 sorties and nearly 1,600 fighter missions over Nazi-occupied Europe, protecting B-24 bombers from aircraft fire and destroying enemy targets.

The Tuskegee Airmen received the Congressional Gold Medal in 2007 at a ceremony in the Rotunda of the US Capitol "in recognition of their unique military record, which inspired revolutionary reform in the Armed Forces." In 2024, The National WWII Museum was proud to recognize the Tuskegee Airmen with the American Spirit Award, the institution’s highest honor, for their accomplishments and patriotism in the face of discrimination.

Said Hardy upon accepting the American Spirit Award on behalf the group: “When I think about the fellas who flew before me and with me at Tuskegee, and the fact that we did prove that we could do anything that anyone else could do and it’s paid off today ... it’s hard to believe that I’m here receiving this award—with them.” 

Hardy is featured in The National WWII Museum's interactive Voices from the Front experience, and we are proud to have his oral history in our Digital Collections. We are grateful for Mr. Hardy's service and friendship, and our thoughts are with his family.