Despite working with and for the military and receiving the same training and operating under the same expectations, the Women’s Airforce Service Pilots did not receive recognition until 1977, 33 years after the disbandment of the program.

"You don't need legislation to prove something. You can be whatever you set your heart and head to be, and don't let anybody tell you can't be, because 1078 women pilots did it in World War II." -Annelle Henderson Bulechek 

The Bill that gave the WASPs military status.

|95th Congress, First Session, House Bill 3321​​​​​​​|

Sadly, after their efforts to bring victory to America during WWII, the WASPs were forgotten. One WASP said that when the Air Force Academy started accepting women in 1976, it was claimed that this was the first time women could fly military aircrafts, which was obviously untrue, but underscored how forgotten they were.

This article explores the congressional debate over a bill to militarize the WASPs.

|The Tacoma Times, September 24, 1942, Page 7.|

The battle to gain military recognition took more than three decades to achieve, after early and repeated efforts began in 1943. Despite formal recognition in 1977 of their roles as an essential part of the WWII efforts, it is unfortunate that even today the work of the WASPs is still not well-known.