Lauretta M Schimmoler (September 17, 1900 Fort Jennings, Ohio - January 1981

Glendale, California Glendale is a city in the San Fernando Valley and Verdugo Mountains regions of Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, California, United States. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. Census the population was 196,543, up from ...

) was an

aviator An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its Aircraft flight control system, directional flight controls. Some other aircrew, aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are al ...

who was the first woman in the United States to establish an airport in the United States, the first woman to command an

American Legion The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is a non-profit organization of U.S. war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militi ...

post and was the founder of the Aerial Nurse Corps of America the predecessor of the

flight nurse A flight nurse is a registered nurse who specialises in the field of providing comprehensive pre-hospital, emergency critical care, and hospital care to a vast scope of patients. The care of these patients is generally during aeromedical evacuat ...

s of the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

Biography

Schimmoler graduated from the Bliss Business College in

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

and began studies in law after working as a court stenographer. She left the study of law to become a secretary in a chicken hatchery in Bucyrus, Ohio that led her to become the owner of her own poultry business. Her life changed when she witnessed a test flight in Dayton. She began an intensive study of flight through working various jobs with the United States Air Mail, Lockheed Aircraft where she studied the manufacture of aircraft and the US Weather Bureau earning a student pilot licence on August 10, 1929, and becoming the advertising manager of her flight school. She became the first woman to establish and maintain an airport that was located in Bucyrus. She received her full pilot's licence on September 8, 1930. In 1932 in recognition of her works in aviation, she was inducted into the Ninety-Nines: International Organization of Women Pilots. After witnessing the results of a tornado in Ohio in 1930, Schimmoler saw the necessity of evacuating medical patients by air and created what today is recognised as the forerunners of the

. In 1933 she formed the Emergency Flight Corps. In 1936 it was reformed as the Aerial Nurse Corps with 78 nurses. Initially, both the American Red Cross and the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

took a dim view of the Aerial Nurse Corps. However, during World War II a medical air ambulance evacuation squadron was formed in May 1942. During this time Shimmoler became the

technical advisor In film production, a technical advisor is someone who advises the director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a ...

to and played a role in the

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...

film ''

Parachute Nurse ''Parachute Nurse'' is a 1942 Columbia Pictures film about the Aerial Nurse Corps. The film was directed by Charles Barton. Plot Inspired by a visit from their old friend Lieutenant Mullins, an officer in the Aerial Nurse Corps, nurses Glenda W ...

'' that was released in August 1942. The United States Army Air Forces changed their minds on flight nurses and on 30 November 1942 made an appeal for experienced female registered nurses and

air hostess A flight attendant, also known as steward/stewardess or air host/air hostess, is a member of the aircrew aboard commercial flights, many business jets and some government aircraft. Collectively called cabin crew, flight attendants are primar ...

es to be flight nurses in the Army Nurse Corps to be assigned to air evacuation units. In 1944 she, at last, was commissioned in the

Women's Army Corps The Women's Army Corps (WAC) was the women's branch of the United States Army. It was created as an auxiliary unit, the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC) on 15 May 1942 and converted to an active duty status in the Army of the United States ...

. Schimmoler became the first post commander of the

's Amelia Earhardt Post 127 of

in 1946 that initially contained woman veterans. In 1966 Schimmoler was recognised by the

Surgeon General of the United States The surgeon general of the United States is the operational head of the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps (PHSCC) and thus the leading spokesperson on matters of public health in the federal government of the United States. Th ...

as the first flight nurse and by the United States Air Force who awarded her the gold wings of a flight nurse.

Legacy

In 2011 the United States

Air Force Association The Air & Space Forces Association (AFA) is an independent, 501(c)(3) non-profit, professional military association for the United States Air Force and United States Space Force. Headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, its declared mission is ...

created a Schimmoler Award for excellence.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schimmoler, Lauretta 1900 births 1981 deaths American women aviators American women in World War II Aviation pioneers Aviators from Ohio United States Army officers Women in the United States Army 20th-century American people