History Of Women Airforce Service Pilots

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In 1942, Jacqueline Cochran headed the formation of the Women Airforce Service Pilots(WASP) to free male pilots for air combat. 1 The program produced 1,102 female pilots and lasted for 29 months. In that time 38 women were killed ferrying and testing the planes. 2
When Pearl Harbor was attacked, Jacqueline Cochran tried convincing the Army Air Corps to allow women pilots to operate military air craft within the United States. When that failed she decided to aid the British Air Transport Auxiliary and took a group of women pilots with her. When she returned to recruit a second group she heard that the Women’s Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron (WAFS) had been created. Knowing that there would be a need for more than the 25 members of WAFS she established the Women’s Flying Training Detachment (WFTD) with a starting class of 25 women. They ferried, tested, delivered, put flying time on new engines, towed targets for gunnery practice, and instructed male pilot cadets. In August of 1943 the WAFS and WFTD merged to form the Women Airforce Service Pilots, otherwise known as WASP. In the short time the WASP program existed, 25,000 women applied to become a pilot. Only 1,879 candidates were accepted and 1,074 successfully completed the program.3

To become a member of the WASP a woman had to be in possession of a commercial license, be between the ages of 21 and 35 (women as young as 18 were accepted if they had a pilots license and flight experience), and have a minimum of 200 hours of fly time.4 The pilots also had to be a minimum of 5-foot-2-inches. Margaret Phelan Taylor was a WASP pilot who was half an inch shorter than the 5-foot-2-inch minimum height limit. When it came time to be measured she simply stood on her tip toes. After arrivi...

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...nces, but now the war situation has changed and the time has come when your volunteer services are no longer needed. The situation is that if you continue in service, you will be replacing instead of releasing our young men. I know the WASP wouldn’t want that. I want you to know that I appreciate your war service and the AAF will miss you…”8
The women flew 60 million miles in 77 different air craft; maintained a safety record that was slightly better than male pilots; and had even trained male pilots. Yet it took 33 years after being disbanded for the WASPs to be given veteran status. After disbandment some of the women stayed pilots, but not with any of the major airlines. Others attained jobs as stewardesses to stay in the air. The major airlines would not hire these highly qualified and experienced pilots to fly their planes, simply because they were female.9

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