« Inspiring Story & Photos: WWII's WASP Women »

In recent weeks, I've learned a lot about the women who comprised the WWII Women's Airforce Service Pilots (WASP-WWII). They've been in the news recently because two days ago (3/10/10) these women were finally recognized in Washington DC as they were awarded Congressional Gold Medals for their service. The photo to the left is of Lillian Yonally at Avenger Field in Sweetwater TX, in 1943. Yonally, now 87, was one of about 1,100 young WASP-WWII women, a short-lived military program that trained civilian volunteers to fly planes stateside so men could report overseas for combat duty. The women, who were required to have previous flight experience, trained at Avenger Field and then were stationed at 120 Army air bases within the U.S. Yonnelly, it turns out, documented her service in color photos, which are featured at the NPR Picture Show Blog in a 3/10/10 article by Heidi Glenn titled A Contraband Camera: Photos of World War II WASP. The article and photos are terrific. You can also hear Yonnelly talk about her experiences and view her rare color photographs in the slideshow below. As you view the photos and hear the WASP story, keep in mind these words from the official WASP website:

Nearly 70 years have passed since America fought in World War II. In those critical days over a thousand courageous women pilots took to the skies in military aircraft for the United States Army Air Forces to relieve desperately needed male pilots for combat duty. These women pilots paid their own way to enter training, took up a collection to help pay 
for the expenses of burial when one of their peers was killed, and,
when they were disbanded in 1944, they had to pay their own way back home.There were no honors, no benefits, and few thanks.