A name is never just a name. Ours carries the weight of a Tuskegee Airman's courage, a grandson's sacrifice, and a commitment to service that spans generations.
1st Lt. Jimmy Lanham — 318AB, 1 May 1944
332nd Fighter Group, 301st Fighter Squadron
In the spring of 1944, a young Black officer named Jimmy Lanham pinned on his wings at Tuskegee Army Air Field in Alabama. He was commissioned as a First Lieutenant and assigned to the 332nd Fighter Group, 301st Fighter Squadron — the legendary unit that would become known to the world as the Red Tails.
The 332nd Fighter Group flew their P-51 Mustangs with the distinctive red-painted tails that gave them their name. They became one of the most decorated fighter groups of World War II, renowned for never losing a bomber they were assigned to escort. In a nation that still enforced segregation, these men proved their excellence at 30,000 feet.
1st Lt. Jimmy Lanham was one of them. His service record — serial number 13123661, commissioned 1 May 1944 — is a permanent part of that history. He flew. He served. He came home.
"They called them the Red Tails because of the paint on their planes. We carry that name because of what it meant — excellence, discipline, and the refusal to be defined by anything less than your best."
On the final push into the Reich, 1st Lt. Jimmy Lanham of the 301st Fighter Squadron scored a confirmed aerial kill over southern Germany. The following account is drawn from the official historical record.
“On April 15, the 332nd Fighter Group launched 37 P-51s to strafe rail targets in southern Germany and Austria. Mustangs of the 99th, 100th and 301st Fighter Squadrons each took a separate area. While two of the 301st pilots were strafing rail traffic, they spotted a Me 109 and chased him. 1st Lt. Jimmy Lanham’s shots hit the enemy aircraft in the engine and it burst into flames before crashing into the ground.”
King Abdul Aziz Port, Dammam, Saudi Arabia — Operation Desert Shield, 1990
In 1987, at age 17 and fresh out of Marist School in Atlanta, Georgia, Jimmy Lanham III enlisted in the 190th Military Police Company, Georgia Army National Guard. Two years later, the world changed.
In 1989, the 190th was deployed to the Persian Gulf as part of Operation Desert Shield, serving under the highly decorated 89th Military Police Brigade. Their first assignment was the security of King Abdul Aziz Port in Dammam, Saudi Arabia — the staging area for the M-1 Abrams tank fleet, one of the most strategically sensitive installations in the theater.
As Desert Shield escalated into Operation Desert Storm, the 190th moved forward to Hafar Al-Batin, roughly sixty miles from the Iraqi border. There, they conducted border patrol, Main Supply Route (MSR) security, and convoy escort operations in the open desert. It was during this period that Jimmy's squad survived two Scud missile attacks.
When the ground war ended, the 190th moved into Kuwait City, where they patrolled the aftermath of one of the most devastating military campaigns in modern history — for months, until they rotated home.
Hafar Al-Batin, Saudi Arabia
Kuwait — post-liberation patrol
Kuwait City — among the rubble
Left to right: Honor Guard brassard • Arabic-script theater MP brassard • 89th MP Brigade, Desert Storm
The name Red Tail Multiservice is not a brand decision. It is a declaration of lineage.
Jimmy Lanham III grew up knowing who his grandfather was — not as a historical figure, but as a man. A man who was told he could not fly, and flew anyway. A man who was told his unit was inferior, and became legendary. A man who carried himself with the quiet discipline of someone who had nothing left to prove and everything left to give.
When it came time to name a business built on those same values — reliability under pressure, chain-of-custody discipline, showing up when it matters most — there was only one name that fit. The Red Tails did not lose a single bomber they were assigned to escort. Red Tail Multiservice does not lose a single delivery it is assigned to make.
The P-51 Mustang on the company logo is not decoration. It is a reminder of where the standard was set, and by whom.
"My grandfather flew for a country that didn't fully believe in him yet. I serve a community that I believe in completely. The name connects those two things."
— Jimmy Lanham III, Founder, Red Tail Multiservice, LLC
