W.A.S.P.s:
The Fly-Girls of WWII
During WWII, the U.S. military had a shortage of male pilots located stateside. In 1941 Jacqueline Cochran and Nancy Love had an idea to address this problem by creating two new programs allowing women to ferry military planes, which evolved into the Women's Airforce Service Pilots (W.A.S.P.). Women could ferry airplanes to the military bases across the country or do testing on planes, freeing men to fly more combat missions. In 1943 the program was disbanded, but the U.S. military later recognized that women flying planes need no longer only be a hobby, but a profession. This program was a turning point that laid the path for women to enlist in the military forces. Today women can fly all missions, including combat, in every branch of the U.S. military.
Memorabilia
W.A.S.P. pin for graduating |Elizabeth McGeorge Sullivan (1938) Papers|
W.A.S.P. song book |Elizabeth McGeorge Sullivan (1938) Papers| Fifinella match book |Elizabeth McGeorge Sullivan (1938) Papers|
Fifinella patch (W.A.S.P. mascot) |Elizabeth McGeorge Sullivan (1938) Papers|
"I might have been born in a hovel, but I determined to travel with the wind and the stars."
~Jacqueline Cochran
Nicole Terry
W.A.S.P.s The fly girls of WWII
Junior division
Individual Website
Number of student composed words: 1129
Total length of multimedia: 2:08
Total words in Process paper: 500