Two Tuskegee Airmen turned NYPD Detectives

Long before they became two of New York’s Finest, Detectives Floyd J. Carter and Randolph F. Edwards were members of the elite fighter pilot group known as the Tuskegee Airmen.

The Tuskegee Airmen, who got their name from the town they trained in (Tuskegee, Alabama), were a world-class group of pilots who served in the all-Black 332nd Fighter Group and 477th Bombardment Group of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF).

Like many African Americans in the United States, the Tuskegee Airmen had to fight two foes –the Axis Powers and racial discrimination at home. By the time the Tuskegee Airmen became active in 1941, the U.S. military would take seven more years until its official desegregation.

Det. Edwards was amid his Tuskegee Airmen training, when World War II ended. By the early 1950s he returned to active duty during the Korean War. After proudly serving his country, Det. Edwards returned home to New York City and joined the police department in November 1955. He was 28 years old.

Det. Edwards joined the NYPD at 28-years-old in Nov. 1955. He began his career on patrol in Brooklyn’s 75th Pct. He held numerous investigative assignments within the Detective Bureau before his retirement in the Department Investigations Squad in 1981. Det. Edwards received one Commendation medal in his 26-year career.

Det. Carter, also a Tuskegee Airmen, served the nation for over 31 years in active and reserve roles, including World War II, the Korean War, Vietnam War, and other Cold War era missions.

On March 29, 2007, former U.S. President George W. Bush honored Det. Carter with the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian award in the U.S. He was amongst 300 of the last surviving Tuskegee Airmen.

After serving in the military, Det. Carter became a machinist, and soon after joined the New York City Police Department. In 1953, at the age of 31, he began his career on patrol in the Bronx’s 40th Pct. He was promoted to Detective Second Grade in October 1966. He served in the 32nd and 45th Precinct Detective Squads before his retirement in Oct. 1973. He was awarded two Excellent Police Duty and two Meritorious Police Duty medals during his 20-year career.

The NYPD never forgets their service to their country and to the City of New York.