![]() ![]() Arnold asked her to ferry a bomber to Great Britain in order to generate publicity for the idea of women piloting military aircraft. Arnold, chief of the Army Air Force, and to General Robert Olds, who became the head of the Air Transport Command (ATC). Cochran was introduced by Roosevelt to General Henry H. Pilot Jacqueline "Jackie" Cochran wrote to the First Lady, Eleanor Roosevelt, in 1939 to suggest the idea of using women pilots in non-combat missions. WASP started out as two separate organizations. In 1977, for their World War II service, the members were granted veteran status, and in 2009 awarded the Congressional Gold Medal. Thirty-eight WASP members lost their lives and one, Gertrude Tompkins, disappeared while on a ferry mission, her fate still unknown. They flew over 60 million miles transported every type of military aircraft towed targets for live anti-aircraft gun practice simulated strafing missions and transported cargo. During its period of operation, each member's service had freed a male pilot for military combat or other duties. ![]() The WASP arrangement with the US Army Air Forces ended on December 20, 1944. On August 5, 1943, the WFTD and WAFS merged to create the WASP organization. They were pioneering organizations of civilian women pilots, who were attached to the United States Army Air Forces to fly military aircraft during World War II. ![]() Both were organized separately in September 1942. WASP was preceded by the Women's Flying Training Detachment (WFTD) and the Women's Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron (WAFS). Despite various members of the armed forces being involved in the creation of the program, the WASP and its members had no military standing. Their purpose was to free male pilots for combat roles during World War II. Members of WASP became trained pilots who tested aircraft, ferried aircraft, and trained other pilots. The Women Airforce Service Pilots ( WASP) (also Women's Army Service Pilots or Women's Auxiliary Service Pilots ) was a civilian women pilots' organization, whose members were United States federal civil service employees.
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