WASP: More Than Just "Ferry Pilots" | Women Auxiliary Service Pilots

Video Description

These pilots changed the face of military history. When the United States entered World War II in 1941, many changes were brought about to the role of women in the workforce and as members of the military forces. With much of the available male population serving in the military or in wartime jobs, it fell to women to fill the gaps in both civilian and military support occupations. Prior to WWII, only 15% of women worked outside the home, but during the war, that rose to 25%. The women who went on to become part of the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) left behind traditional roles and exchanged them for dangerous jobs in high-powered military aircraft. They would play a key role in the Army Air Force and impact the course of military history. In September 1939, just after the outbreak of war in Europe, Jacqueline (Jackie) Cochran, an American aviator, wrote to First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt to suggest the formation of an all-female auxiliary pilot corps for the military. Cochran explained that women pilots could fly non-combat stateside missions, releasing male pilots for combat duty. In early 1940, Nancy Harkness Love, a commercial and test pilot, wrote to Air Corps Colonel Robert Olds with a similar proposal for the military to use female pilots to transport planes from factories to military bases. The proposed groups differed in a couple of ways. Nancy Love intended for her group to remain small, only ferry planes from one location to another, and would remain civilian pilots. Jackie Cochran proposed that her auxiliary flying group would preform a variety of duties and would eventually become part of the Army Air Forces (AAF) once the program showed success. Neither proposal was initially accepted by General H. “Hap” Arnold, the Commanding General of the AAF. In 1941 there were 2,100 licensed women pilots in the U.S. including Jackie Cochran who became the first woman to fly a military bomber across the Atlantic. There she joined with the British Air Transport Auxiliary to promote the idea of women pilots. In September 1942 the first women’s auxiliary pilot group proposed by Nancy Love received approval to recruit pilots. Love was appointed commander of the Women's Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron (WAFS). She employed skilled female pilots who, as civil service employees, would ferry planes between factories and Army Air Force installations as part of the Air Transport Command. On hearing of the formation of the WAFS, Jackie Cochran returned from Britain to again advocate for her women’s pilot proposal. Hap Arnold agreed to its formation and appointed her head of the 319th Women’s Flying Training Detachment (WFTD), a civilian auxiliary that would include ground and flight training. The first recruits began work in November 1942 at the Houston Municipal Airport. The 319th WFTD training facility in Houston proved insufficient for the needs of the program, and another training location was approved at Avenger Field, in Sweetwater, Texas. Avenger Field was an all-female air base except for its instructors and support crews. The first three training classes initially remained in Houston, while the fourth class transferred to Sweetwater. The first class graduated at Avenger Field in April 1943. On June 28, 1943, the WAFS under Nancy Love and the WFTD under Jackie Cochran were combined and officially renamed as the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP), a name chosen by General Hap Arnold. Cochran was officially appointed Air Force Director of Women Pilots, and Love was put in charge of all ferrying operations. Women Airforce Service Pilots flew 70 hours each of basic, primary, and advanced training. At graduation, the WASP pilots had 560 hours of ground school and 210 hours in flight training. Their ground training covered 12 areas of college-level courses including math, physics, navigation, and maintenance. Flight training involved take-offs and landings, snap rolls, parachute bailouts, night flying, cross country flying, and work in a Link trainer. Trainees were held to a high standard; at any time, the civilian or military instructor could order a “check ride” to assess how the students were doing. If the women failed the check ride they were dismissed from the program. Twenty-five thousand women applied for admission to the WASP training program; 1,830 were admitted and 1,074 completed the course. Watch more aircraft, heroes, and their stories and missions ➤ https://www.youtube.com/@Dronescapes To support/join the channel ➤ https://www.youtube.com/@Dronescapes/join IG ➤ https://www.instagram.com/dronescapesvideos FB ➤ https://www.facebook.com/Dronescapesvideos X/Twitter ➤ https://dronescapes.video/2p89vedj THREADS ➤ https://www.threads.net/@dronescapesvideos #aviation #wasp #history