, more men were added to the 99th Pursuit Squadron until they were ready for combat.
             On April 24, 1943, the 99th Pursuit Squadron arrived in North Africa to become part of the war and start what would become one of the greatest legends of World War II (Black Knights, p. 15). Their first mission was a strafing attack on Pantelleria Island and occurred on June 2, 1943. Then on October 9, 1943, they were combined with the 79th fighter group, which was an all-white group led by Colonel Earl Bates. This was the first time they were integrated with white troops and were no longer restricted to escort missions of bombers. They flew missions together for almost a year. Operation Strangle was the last mission with the 79th and also concluded the existence of the 99th squadron. Surprisingly for the time, the white and black pilots and crewmembers worked well together. On July 4, 1944, the 99th joined three other squadrons - the 100th, the 301st and the 302nd - to form the 332nd fighter group. The members of the 99th had voiced
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