Deiz was born on June 17, 1919, in Portland, Oregon.[4][8] He was the son of William Carlos Deiz (10 Aug 1881 – 14 Feb 1950), a Jamaican immigrant, and Elnora Noni Deiz (3 Oct 1888 - 15 May 1975).[9] His younger brother, Carl Deiz, was a Lieutenant and a Documented Member of the Tuskegee Airmen who served in Tuskegee, Alabama.[10][8]
In 1943 before his deployment with the 99th Fighter Squadron, Deiz married Ruby Lee Butler Deiz (1920–2012). They had one son, Robert E. Deiz, and two grandsons.[8]
Deiz attended Portland, Oregon's Franklin High School where he played horn and double bass at school and in the Portland Junior Symphony.[11] He was also a track & field star, setting several records.[12] After graduating from Franklin in 1937, Deiz attended the University of Oregon for two years.[13] At Oregon, Deiz became a track & field star, setting records in the 100-yard dash, the 220-yard race and relay races.[12][14] He also continued to play horn and double bass as a member of the University of Oregon Orchestra.[12]
On January 27, 1944, Deiz shot down an enemy German Focke-Wulf Fw 190, earning his first kill as a combat fighter pilot.[20][21] The next day, Deiz earned his 2nd kill after shooting down another enemy German Focke-Wulf Fw 190.[22][23] After returning to the United States, Deiz became a B-25 aircraft instructor at Tuskegee.[24]
Deiz served as a model for the popular 1943 “Keep Us Flying” World War II War Bonds poster created by Betsy Graves Reyneau, a white artist known for her portraits of prominent African Americans that circulated as part of the Harmon Foundation's traveling exhibition in the 1940s.[25][26] Originally, Reyneau was in Tuskegee to create a portray of famed scientist George Washington Carver.[27][28]
After retiring from the military, Deiz worked in electronics at North American Aviation for three years. After working as a parole officer for three years, Deiz served as a parole supervisor for 17 years. He retired in the early 1980s.[34][35]
1992, Deiz suffered a heart attack and died after attending an American Cancer Society meeting in Columbus, Ohio.[37]
Legacyedit
In 2004, the Oregon Flying Hall of Fame posthumously inducted Diaz in a ceremony at the Evergreen Aviation Museum in McMinnville, Oregon. Deiz's widow, Ruby, and son represented him.[38][39]
^Click. "All-Negro Fighter Squadron Ready for Action: They're Smart, Tough and Rarin' to Go. Meet the Flying Black Panthers." Volume 6, Number 9http://www.oldmagazinearticles.com/draw_pdf.php?filename=Tuskegee_Fighter_Pilots.pdf
^"Tuskegee Airmen Pilot Roster". CAF Rise Above. Retrieved 11 August 2020.
^ abc"Robert W. Deiz". CAF RISE ABOVE. 2018-10-22. Retrieved 2023-08-30.
^Ligon (2019-11-11). "Who Is He? A Long-Delayed Search for the Identity of the Airman Portrayed in a World War II Poster". Rediscovering Black History. Retrieved 2023-08-30.
^""Keep Us Flying" War Bonds poster". CAF RISE ABOVE. Retrieved 2023-08-30.
^Heller, Steven (2013-06-27). "When Black People's Images Are Used to Fight Colonial, Chinese, and Soviet Wars". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2023-08-30.
^ abc"1992 obituary: Robert W. Deiz, WWII fighter pilot, dies at 72". oregonlive. 2014-12-03. Retrieved 2023-08-30.
^"Maj. Robert William Deiz". geni_family_tree. 1919. Retrieved 2023-08-30.
^Killen, John (2014-12-03). "Carl Deiz, Portland man who flew with Tuskegee Airmen, dies at 94". oregonlive. Retrieved 2023-08-30.
^"Franklin High School Alumni Association". franklinhighschoolalumni.blogspot.com. Retrieved 2023-08-30.
^ abcd"1992 obituary: Robert W. Deiz, WWII fighter pilot, dies at 72". oregonlive. 2014-12-03. Retrieved 2024-03-06.
^Gubert, Betty Kaplan; Sawyer, Miriam; Fannin, Caroline M. (2002). Distinguished African Americans in Aviation and Space Science. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 978-1-57356-246-1.
^"Franklin High School Alumni Association". franklinhighschoolalumni.blogspot.com. Retrieved 2024-03-06.
^Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum. "The Oregon Aviation Hall of Honor: Major Robert Deiz - 2004." https://www.evergreenmuseum.org/oregon-aviation-hall-of-honor Archived 2019-12-12 at the Wayback Machine
^https://www.faa.gov/about/history/milestones/media/The_CAA_Helps_America_Prepare_for_World_WarII.pdf "The CAA Helps America Prepare for World War II."
Theresa L. Kraus, FAA Historian.
^"Tuskegee Airmen Pilot Roster". CAF RISE ABOVE. Retrieved 2023-08-30.
^CAF Rise Above. "Robert W. Deiz." https://cafriseabove.org/robert-w-deiz/
^The Oregonian. "Oregon History. 1992 obituary: Robert W. Deiz, WWII fighter pilot, dies at 72." By The Oregonian/Oregon Live. Updated Jan 10, 2019; Posted Dec 02, 2014. https://www.oregonlive.com/history/2014/12/1992_obituary_robert_w_deiz_ww.html
^CAF Rise Above. "Robert W. Deiz." https://cafriseabove.org/robert-w-deiz/
^CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE AIRMEN AERIAL VICTORY CREDITS. Dr. Daniel L. Haulman, Air Force Historical Research Agency, 600 Chennault Circle, Maxwell AFB, AL 36112-6424. https://tuskegeeairmen.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/TAI_Resources_112-Victories.pdf
^CAF Rise Above. "Robert W. Deiz." https://cafriseabove.org/robert-w-deiz/
^CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE AIRMEN AERIAL VICTORY CREDITS. Dr. Daniel L. Haulman, Air Force Historical Research Agency, 600 Chennault Circle, Maxwell AFB, AL 36112-6424. https://tuskegeeairmen.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/TAI_Resources_112-Victories.pdf
^Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum. "The Oregon Aviation Hall of Honor: Major Robert Deiz - 2004." https://www.evergreenmuseum.org/oregon-aviation-hall-of-honor Archived 2019-12-12 at the Wayback Machine
^CAF Rise Above. "Robert W. Deiz." https://cafriseabove.org/robert-w-deiz/
^Rediscovering Black History. "Who Is He? A Long-Delayed Search for the Identity of the Airman Portrayed in a World War II Poster." Tligon. November 11, 2019. https://rediscovering-black-history.blogs.archives.gov/2019/11/11/who-is-he-a-long-delayed-search-for-the-identity-of-the-airman-portrayed-in-a-world-war-ii-poster/
^CAF Rise Above. "“Keep Us Flying” War Bonds poster." https://cafriseabove.org/artifact/keep-us-flying-war-bonds-poster/
^The Atlantic. "When Black People's Images Are Used to Fight Colonial, Chinese, and Soviet Wars: A new University of Pennsylvania exhibit reveals the ironies embedded in heroic portrayals of Africans and African-Americans in mass propaganda over the years." Steven Heller. JUNE 27, 2013. https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2013/06/when-black-peoples-images-are-used-to-fight-colonial-chinese-and-soviet-wars/277277/
^The Oregonian. "Oregon History. 1992 obituary: Robert W. Deiz, WWII fighter pilot, dies at 72." By The Oregonian/Oregon Live. Updated Jan 10, 2019; Posted Dec 02, 2014. https://www.oregonlive.com/history/2014/12/1992_obituary_robert_w_deiz_ww.html
^Distinguished Africans in Aviation. "Robert W. Deiz." Page 104. https://books.google.com/books?id=QAXWwVrc9TsC&dq=robert+w+deiz&pg=PA104
^The Oregonian. "Oregon History. 1992 obituary: Robert W. Deiz, WWII fighter pilot, dies at 72." By The Oregonian/Oregon Live. Updated Jan 10, 2019; Posted Dec 02, 2014. https://www.oregonlive.com/history/2014/12/1992_obituary_robert_w_deiz_ww.html
^Distinguished Africans in Aviation. "Robert W. Deiz." Page 104. https://books.google.com/books?id=QAXWwVrc9TsC&dq=robert+w+deiz&pg=PA104
^The Oregonian. "Oregon History. 1992 obituary: Robert W. Deiz, WWII fighter pilot, dies at 72." By The Oregonian/Oregon Live. Updated Jan 10, 2019; Posted Dec 02, 2014. https://www.oregonlive.com/history/2014/12/1992_obituary_robert_w_deiz_ww.html
^CAF Rise Above. "Robert W. Deiz." https://cafriseabove.org/robert-w-deiz/
^The Oregonian. "Oregon History. 1992 obituary: Robert W. Deiz, WWII fighter pilot, dies at 72." By The Oregonian/Oregon Live. Updated Jan 10, 2019; Posted Dec 02, 2014. https://www.oregonlive.com/history/2014/12/1992_obituary_robert_w_deiz_ww.html
^The Oregonian. "Oregon History. 1992 obituary: Robert W. Deiz, WWII fighter pilot, dies at 72." By The Oregonian/Oregon Live. Updated Jan 10, 2019; Posted Dec 02, 2014. https://www.oregonlive.com/history/2014/12/1992_obituary_robert_w_deiz_ww.html
^The Oregonian. "Oregon History. 1992 obituary: Robert W. Deiz, WWII fighter pilot, dies at 72." By The Oregonian/Oregon Live. Updated Jan 10, 2019; Posted Dec 02, 2014. https://www.oregonlive.com/history/2014/12/1992_obituary_robert_w_deiz_ww.html
^Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum. "The Oregon Aviation Hall of Honor: Major Robert Deiz - 2004." https://www.evergreenmuseum.org/oregon-aviation-hall-of-honor Archived 2019-12-12 at the Wayback Machine
^Franklin High School Alumni Association. "Tuskegee Airmen Invited to Inauguration. Monday, December 22, 2008. https://franklinhighschoolalumni.blogspot.com/2008/