555th Parachute Infantry Battalion Lane (Queens)
Present name:None
Location:At the southeast corner of Tuskegee Airmen Way and 157th Street
Honoree: The 555th Parachute Infantry Battalion, all African-American and all volunteers, did not serve overseas during World War II, but in May 1945 it was sent to the west coast to fight forest fires ignited by Japanese incendiary balloons. Although this threat did not materialize, the 555th participated in dangerous fire-fighting missions throughout the Pacific Northwest, earning the nicknames "Smoke Jumpers" and "Triple Nickles." In October 1945, the battalion was attached to the elite 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, NC. It was inactivated in 1947, with most of its personnel reassigned to the division's 3rd Battalion, 505th Airborne Infantry. (Wills) [This is one of 18 namings along Tuskegee Airmen Way honoring outstanding units and individuals in African-American military history.]
LL:2014/34