US Air Force will still teach about black pilots

The US Air Force will continue to teach about its first black pilots, known as the Tuskegee Airmen, in its basic training, following a review about what to prohibit under President Donald Trump's ban on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programmes in the federal government.

The US military will also keep materials on Women Air Force Service Pilots .

Since he was sworn in last week, Trump has swiftly worked to wipe out DEI programmes throughout the government, but his new defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, has said removing materials on the Tuskegee Airmen "will not stand".

A group of around 1,000 black pilots, the airmen flew hundreds of dangerous missions during World War II.

Over the weekend, a US military official said "immediate steps" were taken to remove certain teaching materials in order to "ensure compliance" with Trump's DEI ban in the military.

Some of those materials included footage of the pioneering servicemen and women as part of DEI courses.

"Historical videos were interwoven into US Air Force and Space Force curriculum and were not the direct focus of course removal actions," an Air Force official told CBS News, the BBC's US news partner. "Additional details on curriculum updates will be provided when they're available."

Lt. Gen. Brian S. Robinson, an air education and training command commander, said in a statement that no trainees missed the lesson, but one group had their lesson delayed because of the review.

The Tuskegee Airmen were trained at a segregated air base in Alabama between 1941 and 1946. They flew hundreds of patrol and attack missions during the war, escorting American bombing crews over Europe.

Other lessons thought to be at risk included those highlighting the Women Airforce Service Pilots, or WASPs, who were were vital in transporting new planes bound for fighting in Europe from the factories where they were produced. Their contributions were later recognised with the right to be buried in Arlington National Cemetery, which is reserved for military personnel.

"The revised training which focuses on the documented historic legacy and decorated valour with which these units and airmen fought for our nation in World War II and beyond will continue on 27 January," Robinson said in a statement.

The news of military members not learning about the Tuskegee Airman had frustrated some Republicans.

One from Alabama, Senator Katie Britt took, took to social media in opposition of the military dropping lessons on the Tuskegee Airmen.

"I have no doubt Secretary Hegseth will correct and get to the bottom of the malicious compliance we've seen in recent days," she wrote in a post on X.

Hours later, Hegseth replied: "Amen! We're all over it senator. This will not stand."

DEI programmes are designed to increase minority participation in the workforce and educate employees about discrimination.

But Trump and other critics say they are discriminatory themselves because they take race, gender, sexual identity or other characteristics into consideration.

Soon after inauguration, the Trump administration emailed thousands of federal employees ordering them to report any efforts to "disguise" diversity initiatives in their agencies or face "adverse consequences".

While Trump's executive order is limited to government agencies, several major companies have followed suit, including DEI training being scaled back at Meta and Amazon.