Raymond Cassagnol

The U.S. Marine Corps had occupied Haiti between 1915 and 1934.

Raymond Cassagnol (September 20, 1920 – June 24, 2023) was a Haitian Air Force officer/flight instructor, alleged Haitian rebel leader, and one of the first Haitian Tuskegee Airmen, "Red Tails," or “Schwartze Vogelmenschen” ("Black Birdmen") or among enemy German pilots.

Cassagnol was an aviation classmate and roommate of Daniel James Jr.., the first-ever African American four-star general.

Cassagnol was Haiti's first World War II-trained combat fighter pilot in history.

A centenarian, Cassagnol became the last surviving Haitian Tuskegee Airmen.

Cassagnol was born on September 20, 1920, in U.S.-occupied Port au Prince, Haiti.

In 1937, Cassagnol worked with his two older brothers who were employed as mechanics.

A year later, he graduated from high school in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

Unable to afford college in Haiti, Cassagnol applied to the Haitian military.

In 1942, the United States military bequeathed to Haiti six (6) armed Douglas O-38E observation planes costing $12,000 each to patrol the Caribbean Sea for Nazi German submarines regularly surfacing around Haiti.

Soon after, Haiti built the Bowen Field airstrip in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

Though Haiti commissioned officers to fly these observation planes, all lacked formal flight training, leading to unnecessary aircraft accidents and wreckage.

In July 1942, Cassagnol responded to a Haitian government-sponsored newspaper ad seeking 40 airmen recruits.

The ad resulted in pandemonium in Port-Au-Prince, Haiti on official selection day, attracting 800 frenzied airmen candidates and their families.

The recruiters selected 42 candidates, including Cassagnol who almost missed his name being called, saved for a friend.

He was also selected because he spoke four languages: French, Spanish, Creole and English.

After returning home briefly to pack, Cassagnol left for Bowen Field for a three-week recruit boot camp as a new enlistee in the Haitian Army.

On December 23, 1943, Cassagnol married his childhood sweetheart, Valentine Marie Therese Cassagnol (1921–2021) at the “Paroisse du Sacre Coeur” – Parish of the Sacred Heart.

Valentine played a significant role in the founding of the Girl Scouts in Haiti (known there as the "Guides").

Cassagnol and Valentine were married for 77 years until her passing in April 2021.

The couple had several children: Mireille Cassagnol, Dominique Cassagnol Ballacchino, Jose Cassagnol, Claude Cassagnol and Raymond Cassagnol Jr.

They also had 15 grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.

By 1943, Cassagnol became an sergeant and an aircraft mechanic within the maintenance department of the newly formed Haitian Air Force or Corps d’Aviation, created by then-Haitian President Elie Lescot in 1942.

He regularly worked on Haiti's aircraft even after duty hours.

Considered a high performer, Cassagnol began to attract the attention of pilot Dean Eshelman, provisional chief of Haiti's air squadron.

One evening, Eshelman visited Bowen Airfield and noticed Cassagnol working overtime.

When they asked him why he was working overtime, Cassagnol responded: "There is nothing else to do."

Intrigued, Cassagnol was asked if he would be interested in becoming a pilot.

The following week, the U.S. Embassy selected three Haitians for combat flight training at Tuskegee Army Airfield in Tuskegee, Alabama: Cassagnol, Philippe Celestin and Alix Pasquet.

In February 1943, the Haitian government sent the men to the United States, traveling aboard a Douglas DC-3 aircraft from Port-au-Prince through Puerto Rico, Miami, Florida, and Jacksonville, Florida.

They collectively became the first Haitians in history to train as combat fighter pilots.

After landing in Miami, Cassagnol received winter clothing, train tickets to Alabama and a substantial pay raise from $40/month for a Haitian sergeant to $80/month for an American sergeant.

Unaccustomed to Jim Crow segregation as a member of a privilege Haitian citizen, Cassagnol made every effort to avoid leaving Tuskegee Army Training Field and Tuskegee Institute's campus, for fear of exposing himself to the humiliation of racial segregation and white southern hostilities.

Nonetheless, Cassagnol became fast friends and roommates with fellow aviation classmate Daniel James Jr.., who would become the United States' first African American four-star General.

On July 28, 1943, Cassagnol graduated as a member of the Single Engine Section Cadet Class SE-43-G, earning his silver wings and subsequent promotion as a second lieutenant in the Haitian Air Force.

A Tuskegee newspaper published an article describing Cassagnol and his two fellow Haitian pilots as a "Triple threat to the Axis."

Cassagnol's accomplishment made the radio in Haiti.

After graduation, Cassagnol returned to Haiti to serve in the newly formed Haitian Air Force, becoming its primary flight instructor for Haiti's wartime pilot training program.

An alleged Haitian rebel leader and fierce political opponent of former Haitian dictator François Duvalier, Cassagnol is noteworthy for flying a B-25 aircraft over Duvalier's National palace in May 1969 in an attempt to bomb it.

He was also the author of the 2004 autobiographical "Mémoires d’un Révolutionaire", published in French.