Blackhawk Squadron

The Blackhawk Squadron is a team of elite combat pilots led by Janos "Blackhawk" Prohaska, first formed in the early stages of World War II to combat the Axis Powers. The Blackhawk Squadron operated from hidden airbases, known as "Blackhawk Islands", and piloted a variety of aircraft; but seemed to give special favouritism to the Grumman XF5F Skyrocket.
Following the end of the war the team remained active to combat the "Communist Threat" before being decommissioned and turned into an air courier service during "peacetime".

The Squadron frequently squared off against fantastical war machines ranging from amphibious "shark planes" and flying tanks, to the "War Wheel"; a gigantic rolling behemoth adorned with spikes and machine guns.

History

Janos "Blackhawk" Prohaska of Poland served with the Bell Heywood Squadron of the International Brigades during the Spanish Civil War as a member of the Communist party, gaining an international reputation as a flyer of amazing skill and courage, until he was expelled by Joseph Stalin after opposing the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, a 1939 treaty of non-aggression between the Soviets and Nazi German.
At one point finding himself in the U.S. in hopes of gathering funds to build a European resistance group against the growing German threat, Blackhawk is framed for a series of murders. With the help of the Sandman, he's ultimately exonerated.
When Poland fell victim to Nazi Germany's blitzkrieg warfare in 1939, Blackhawk returned home to help defend his homeland but was unable to defeat the German "Butcher Squadron" and is soon forced to flee to Britain with his friends Stanislaw "Stan" Drozdowski and Kazimierc "Zeg" Zegota, where they form the "Blackhawk Squadron" to resist the invaders of their homeland from a secret base they dubbed "Blackhawk Island".

As their resistance continued, the Squadron grew to become a truly international band of air aces, all with the goal of fighting the Axis Powers. Some of these pilots included Boris Zinoviev (Russia), Ian Holcolmb-Baker (England), Andre Blanc-DuMont (France), Olaf Friedriksen (Sweden), Ritter Hendricksen (Denmark), and Carlo "Chuck" Sirianni (U.S.). Sadly, Zeg, Stan, Boris, and Ian were soon killed in action but 17-year-old Chinese-American "whiz kid" Weng "Chop Chop" Chan also joined the group soon thereafter. Boris later reemerged as the super-powered villain "Anti-Man", hellbent on destroying the Squadron as vengeance for leaving him for dead.

As the Squadron's reputation grew, American aviatrix Zinda Blake, determined to become the first female core member of the Squadron, trained herself to pilot a wide range of modern aircraft and made herself an expert in various forms of combat and weaponry. Spontaneously appearing in Africa to help the Squadron rescue Olaf from the pirate known as "the Scavenger", Zinda's request for membership was rebuffed; being told that the Blackhawk codes forbade a woman from joining the team.
A short time later, the Scavenger returned and managed to capture the entire Blackhawk Squadron, holding them prisoner within his floating island citadel. Ignoring the code, Blackhawk sent a radio signal to Zinda who arrived just in time to help extradite the captured Blackhawks and defeat the Scavenger. In recognition of her resourcefulness and bravery, Blackhawk found a loophole in the code that allowed her to become an honorary member of the team and become the first "Lady Blackhawk".
Also during this time, Lieutenant Theodore Gaynor of the United States Marine Corps joined the team when Weng Chan took a leave of absence to fight the Japanese in China. Gaynor left the team after it was learned his "hardline stance against the Germans" included the execution of not only Nazi soldiers, but also civilians.

As the World War ended and the war against the "Communist Threat" began, Blackhawk found himself yet again under suspicion by the U.S. Government for his Communist ties. Around this same time, the Blackhawks are joined by Captain Natalie Reed, a brilliant Russian-American flight engineer who redesigns the Blackhawks' aircraft and is soon thereafter dubbed as the second "Lady Blackhawk" by the U.S. press. It is with her help that Blackhawk is able to exonerate himself from suspicion by stopping Nazi agent and onetime Hollywood actor Death Mayhew from detonating an atomic bomb in New York City.

The C.I.A. later recruited the Blackhawks, and moved "Blackhawk Airways" to Washington, D.C., the U.S. Government wanted more control over the team and their missions; wishing to incorporate the squadron fully to serve the U.S.'s interests. When Blackhawk objected; citing that the team was an international force, the team was imprisoned until rescued by Blackhawk and new recruit Paco Herrera.
The isle of Pontalba was then transformed into the new Blackhawk Island and the Blackhawks severed all ties with the C.I.A. and the U.S. Government.

Years after the Squadron's official decommissioning, Weng Chan formed an civilian-run air courier service, Blackhawk Express, while his nephew Lee Cheng, formed and ran Blackhawk Industries. While primarily and publicly an air courier service, the company secretly assembled its own team of combat pilots who fought crime in the decades ahead.
While it is known that U.S. President Lex Luthor employed the new Blackhawk Squadron during the Imperiex War, the current whereabouts of the team is not known.

Members

Iconics/Bosses

Lady Blackhawk

Lady Blackhawk (Kendra Saunders)

Mobs

Blackhawk

Affiliated Allies Justice Society of America

Equipment

Blackhawk (Style)

Trivia

• The Blackhawk Squadron first appeared in Military Comics #1 (August 1941).
• At any given time, the Squadron had seven core members/pilots, who are in turn supported by a small army of support personnel and specialised agents.
• Members of the Squadron were known for shouting the battle cry "Hawk-a-a-a!" as they descend from the skies to attack their enemy. Lady Blackhawk continues this tradition albeit not always while piloting.
• The team was secretly sponsored by U.S. President Winston Churchill. Who also endorsed the first formation of the Justice Society of America.
• Zinda Blake, the only publicly known surviving member of the Squadron, owns one eighth of the shares of both Blackhawk Express and Blackhawk Industries.
• Following the war, in 1948, the second Lady Blackhawk; Natalie Reed, was briefly employed in New York as a writer for a series of comic book adventures about the Blackhawks.
• A significant ally to the team was the Asian vigilante known as "Miss Fear", who never formally joined the group but appeared frequently during their Asian missions; developing an unrequited romantic interest in Blackhawk himself.
• The team had its own animal mascot, Blackie the Hawk. Possessing remarkable intelligence, Blackie could type notes in plain English, among other skills, and was fitted with his own miniature belt radio. He was often found perched on Blackhawk's shoulder.
• The Pancho's Bar near the Edward's Airforce Base in California features a memorial photo board behind the bar for "Fallen Heroes". Having been there when Pancho Barnes put the first photo up, Zinda Blake has ensured that photos of each of her fellow Blackhawks are also on the board, despite the Blackhawks not being a U.S. Squadron.

Gallery

External links

• Blackhawk (DC Comics) Wikipedia
• Blackhawk Squadron DC Database
• www.ourworlds.net Independant Website