WASPS, Fifnella and the ATA

Now I'm a bit of a military and aviation history buff but every once in a while I come across something that makes me go WOW, I did not know that!



Well last night I had one of those moments.

It all had to do with women pilots. I was perusing Wikipedia (I love that site although I do tend to check other sources) for information about air racing in the 30's, and in particular the Bendix Trophy the American transcontinental race, and an interesting fact popped up. Jacqueline (Jackie) Cochran was the only woman to win the race. So I decided to check Ms Cochran out.

Now I'm sure most Americans reading this would probably know a bit more about Ms Cochran than I did, to my ever lasting shame! If you don't, read up about her, a truly amazing woman. She started out ferrying aircraft from the US to Britain at the start of the war, becoming the first woman to fly a bomber across the Atlantic. One in Britain she volunteered for the Air Transport Auxillary (ATA). 166 women flew for the ATA during the second world war and transported every kind of aircraft from trainers to the four engined heavy bomber the Lancaster. Even more suprisingly, for the time, the women held the same rank and were paid the same as the men! Fifeteen of these women lost their lives during the war, including Amy Johnson one of Britains great early aviatrix.

The US, under Cochran's and Nancy Harkness Love (a female test pilot) set up the Women Airforce Service Pilots in 1942. The WASP's achievments were mind blowing to me. They numbered in their thousands, carried out such missions as ferrying aircraft to towing drones/aerial targets. Between September 1942 and December 1944 the WASPs delivered 12,650 aircraft of 78 different types. Thirty-eight WASPs died in the course of their duties.

The sad part about the WASPs is that as they were considered to be only undertaking civilian not military duties, those who died were returned home at the expense of their families, without military honours or any note of their having died in the service of their country. They were paid 35% of what their male counterparts received. General Hap Arnold, commander of the US Airforce at the time said "The Air Forces will long remember their service and their final sacrifice." Their records were immediately classified and sealed and it took 35 years before they were released. President Carter in 1977 finally signed legislation to give full military recognition to the WASPs for their military service. Too late for a number of them.

The cute lil Walt Disney picture above is Fifnella, a character from Roald Dahl's The Gremlins, who became the WASPs official mascot and appeared on their shoulder patch.

If you have made it this far through my little history tour, I thank you.

I do find it incredibly sad and remiss that so much has been written in non-fiction and fiction about WWII and this bit has been overlooked.

I think there is a story in there. Don't you?