Air Force resumes instruction with Tuskegee Airmen video after review

The U.S. Air Force resumed using training material that referred to the Tuskegee Airmen after the Trump administration’s rollback of diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives caused an internal review. 

Following Trump’s order last week, the Air Force had removed all training courses with references of the Tuskegee Airmen, the first Black airmen in the military, and the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs), female World War II pilots who played a critical role in ferrying warplanes for the military.

Both Trump and his new Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who was sworn in on Friday, have made eliminating DEI from the military one of the administration’s top priorities.

But the review of the training materials sparked backlash, including from Alabama Sen. Katie Britt (R), who said pausing the use of the videos as “malicious compliance” with the DEI review. Alabama is home to the Tuskegee training base where the men got their name. 

Hegseth on Sunday agreed with Britt, replying to her post on social media, “This will not stand.”

While the Air Force said that “no Airmen or Guardians will miss this block of instruction due to the revision,” they did acknowledge that one group of trainees had the training “delayed,” according to The Associated Press. 

“That block of training was pulled in order to take out DEI material on Jan. 23 and will continue again as of Monday,” the Air Force added.