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On March 29 at 1 p.m., in the august rotunda of the nation's Capitol, he and about 300 of his surviving World War II colleagues will be awarded the Congressional Gold Medal of Honor, the highest honor awarded to a civilian by Congress.
"It's going to be quite awesome," he said during an interview this week. "I'm definitely looking forward to it. I am truly honored to be recognized by the government of the United States after 62 years, since World War II."
Smith, still articulate and spry at 86, and his fellow airmen will join the ranks of such prestigious medal recipients as George Washington (the first recipient), the Wright brothers, Winston Churchill and Rosa Parks.
The Tuskegee Airmen broke the color barrier as the first African-American fighter pilots in the American military. They trained as aviators in the Army Air Corps, the precursor of the Air Force, at the Tuskegee Army Airfield in Tuskegee. Ala.
The African-American pilots, who trained at segregated facilities, endured bigotry on the ground in America while encountering enemy fire in the air in Europe. Despite these obstacles, the pilots achieved a stellar flying record: 1,578 combat missions, destroying or damaging 409 enemy aircraft and logging 200 successful strategic bomber escort missions over Europe.
Smith, who as a child growing up in Des Moines, Iowa, listened with awe the radio news reports of Charles Lindbergh's famed solo flight across the Atlantic, dreamed of becoming an aviator. His dream became reality when he served two tours of duty in Europe for a total of 133 combat missions.
It was during his 133rd mission, on Oct. 13, 1944, while strafing a freight yard near Lake Balaton, Hungary, that his P-51 Mustang was hit by debris from exploding fuel tankers. His plane disabled and engulfed in flames, he was forced to eject, and he lost consciousness as he parachuted, landing in a tree near Zagreb, Yugoslavia. Seriously injured, he was captured by the Germans.
He was transported to prison camp Stalag 18-A and held for seven months, including in a hospital, until the end of the war.
After facing the bigotry and rigors of becoming one of the first African-American military aviators, facing the perils of hostile skies over Europe mission after mission for a year and a half, and surviving ejection from his disabled aircraft and then being imprisoned by the Nazis with a fractured hip, followed by years of hospital treatment for his injuries, he considers himself quite a fortunate men and is proud to have served his country. He said of the 992 African-Americans who were trained as military aviators in the war he was one of the 450 assigned to overseas combat missions. Of these, 66 were killed in action and 32 became prisoners of war.
"I'm very pleased and privileged to be here to talk about it," he said.
Smith retired from the military in 1947 as a captain. His injuries sustained in his final mission excluded him from pursuing a career as a civilian aviator, but he went on to complete his engineering studies at the University of Iowa and then worked as an aerospace engineer with General Electric Co. for 37 years.
Today, his inspiring story is told in an exhibit at the new Pennsylvania Veterans Museum in Media. His dedication as a fighter pilot earned him such prestigious medals as the Air Medal, Purple Heart and Distinguished Flying Cross. And now he can add the Congressional Gold Medal of Honor.
President Bush will confer the medal during the rotunda ceremony. Other speakers will include former Secretary of State Colin Powell and former Secretary of Defense William Cohen.
Smith, who will travel to Washington with his son, Gordon, said the presentation is a group honor, but each airman will be eligible to obtain a replica of the medal.
Smith looks forward not only to the medal ceremony but rejoining comrade-in-arms not seen in more than 60 years.
"We did serve together a long time ago," explained Smith, "and there was a very strong bond that held us in close unity to serve our country, and know that we were not particularly wanted but we wanted to serve... We felt over time that we were doing a good job. It's just a privilege to be here and have the experience to be honored by America, by the government of the United States."
