![WAF-bugler](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/60/WAF-bugler.jpg)
Women in the Air Force (WAF) was a program which served to bring women into limited roles in 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 ...
. WAF was formed in 1948 when
President Truman
Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. A leader of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 34th vice president from January to April 1945 under Franklin ...
signed the
Women's Armed Services Integration Act Women's Armed Services Integration Act () is a United States law that enabled women to serve as permanent, regular members of the armed forces in the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and the recently formed Air Force. Prior to this act, women, with the exc ...
, allowing women to serve directly in the military. The WAF program ended in 1976 when women were accepted into the USAF on an equal basis with men.
WAF was distinct from the Women's Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron (WAFS), a small group of female civilian transport pilots that was formed in 1942 with Nancy H. Love as commander. WAFS was folded into the
Women Airforce Service 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. Members of WASP became t ...
(WASPs) in 1943; WASP was disbanded in December 1944.
Life in the WAF
![WAF1948](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/94/WAF1948.jpg)
When the USAF was officially formed in 1947, a number of former
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 Auxiliaries, 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 U ...
members (WACs) continued serving in the Army but performed Air Force duties, as the Air Force did not admit women in its first year. Some WACs chose to transfer to the WAFs when it became possible.
At its inception in 1948, WAF was limited to 4,000 enlisted women and 300 female officers. Women were encouraged to fill many different roles but were not to be trained as pilots, even though the
United States Army Air Corps
The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical r ...
had graduated their first class of female pilots in April 1943 under wartime conditions. The WAF directorship was to be filled by a non-pilot. All WAFs were assigned ground duties, most ending up in clerical and medical positions.
Women who were already pilots and who would have been good candidates for WAF leadership were instead diverted to the
Air Force Reserves
The Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) is a major command (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force, with its headquarters at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. It is the federal Air Reserve Component (ARC) of the U.S. Air Force, consisting of commiss ...
. For example,
Nancy Harkness Love
Nancy Harkness Love (February 14, 1914 – October 22, 1976), born Hannah Lincoln Harkness, was an American pilot and airplane commander during World War II. She earned her pilot's license at age 16. She worked as a test pilot and air racer in th ...
, founder and commander of the Women's Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron (WAFS) and executive of the
Women Airforce Service 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. Members of WASP became t ...
(WASPs), was awarded the rank of
lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...
in the Reserves in 1948 after it was directed to admit women.
Jacqueline Cochran
Jacqueline Cochran (May 11, 1906 – August 9, 1980) was an American pilot and business executive. She pioneered women's aviation as one of the most prominent racing pilots of her generation. She set numerous records and was the first woman to br ...
, who had volunteered in the
RAF
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...
and had demonstrated solid leadership in greatly expanding the WASP program, was similarly directed to join the Reserves in 1948 within which she rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel in 1969. Female pilots in the Reserves were classified as federal civilian employees, not active military personnel.
Directors
![WAF and flag](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/52/WAF_and_flag.jpg)
The first director of WAF was Colonel
Geraldine Pratt May, who received her first commission in August 1942. She had been among the first women officers assigned to the
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 ...
, where she served as WAC staff director within
Air Transport Command
Air Transport Command (ATC) was a United States Air Force unit that was created during World War II as the strategic airlift component of the United States Army Air Forces.
It had two main missions, the first being the delivery of supplies and ...
. May's wartime command at "Air WAC" included 6,000 enlisted women and officers. On becoming director of WAF, May was promoted to full colonel, the first woman in the Air Force to attain that rank. May served until 1951 at which time she accepted a non-military government post.
Mary Jo Shelly picked up the WAF directorship in 1951. Shelly was among the first women officers in the
Navy
A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...
and had been instrumental in setting up
WAVES
Waves most often refers to:
*Waves, oscillations accompanied by a transfer of energy that travel through space or mass.
* Wind waves, surface waves that occur on the free surface of bodies of water.
Waves may also refer to:
Music
* Waves (ban ...
training in 1942; after the war she had returned to civilian life as assistant to the president of
Bennington College
Bennington College is a private liberal arts college in Bennington, Vermont. Founded in 1932 as a women's college, it became co-educational in 1969. It claims to be the first college to include visual and performing arts as an equal partner in ...
. In WAF, Shelly worked to expand women's assignments within the USAF, as most women were still being placed in traditional "women's jobs" such as stenographer or nurse. A push to employ women in more technical fields was undertaken. Some male USAF commanders were interested in the good results obtained by using women in air defense control centers, passenger air transport operations and in data processing and analysis. Others wanted to see women restricted to a few tightly defined roles. Against the ingrained male-dominated military habits, Shelly achieved only limited success; her outgoing report in 1954 stated that the WAF was fated to remain small and exclusive as long as
Selective Service
The Selective Service System (SSS) is an independent agency of the United States government that maintains information on U.S. citizens and other U.S. residents potentially subject to military conscription (i.e., the draft) and carries out contin ...
applied only to men.
![Wolfenbarger jc4](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5c/Wolfenbarger_jc4.jpg)
Colonel Phyllis D. S. Gray, another ex-WAVE, was director of WAF starting in 1954. She passed the baton to Colonel Emma J. Riley in 1957. Riley linked forces with Army Colonel Mary Louise Milligan (WAC) to work with the
Defense Department Advisory Committee on Women in the Services
The Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services (DACOWITS) is one of the oldest Department of Defense (DoD) federal advisory committees and was established in 1951 by then-Secretary of Defense (SecDef) George C. Marshall. The committee is ...
(DACOWITS) in a successful attempt to retroactively grant active military service status (and its benefits) to former WAACs (Women's Auxiliary Air Corps) who had served in
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
and had also been in WAC, WAF or one of the other women's services. Riley pointed out to a Congressional subcommittee that
SPARS
The United States Coast Guard (USCG) Women's Reserve, also known as the SPARS (SPARS was the acronym for "Semper Paratus—Always Ready"), was the women's branch of the United States Coast Guard Reserve. It was established by the United States ...
,
WAVES
Waves most often refers to:
*Waves, oscillations accompanied by a transfer of energy that travel through space or mass.
* Wind waves, surface waves that occur on the free surface of bodies of water.
Waves may also refer to:
Music
* Waves (ban ...
and female
Marines
Marines, or naval infantry, are typically a military force trained to operate in littoral zones in support of naval operations. Historically, tasks undertaken by marines have included helping maintain discipline and order aboard the ship (refle ...
had been given active duty status but Army and Air Force women had not. The bill passed in 1959 and approximately 1,400 women gained additional active duty credit. WAACs who had chosen not to continue service would wait until 1980 to be granted this status.
Further directors:
* 1961–1965:
Elizabeth Ann Ray
* 1965–1973:
Jeanne M. Holm
Major General Jeanne Marjorie Holm (June 23, 1921 – February 15, 2010) was the first female one-star general of the United States Air Force and the first female two-star general in any service branch of the United States.United States Air Force ...
(first female two-star general in the United States)
* 1973–1975: Billie M. Bobbitt
* 1975–1976: Bianca D. Trimeloni
Recruits
The first WAF recruit was Sergeant
Esther Blake who enlisted July 8, 1948 in the first minute that regular Air Force duty was authorized for women; Blake transferred from the WACs where she had a post in
Fort McPherson
Fort McPherson was a U.S. Army military base located in Atlanta, Georgia, bordering the northern edge of the city of East Point, Georgia. It was the headquarters for the U.S. Army Installation Management Command, Southeast Region; the U.S. Ar ...
, Georgia.
Lackland Air Force Base
Lackland Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) base located in Bexar County, Texas. The base is under the jurisdiction of the 802d Mission Support Group, Air Education and Training Command (AETC) and an enclave of the city of Sa ...
, near
San Antonio, Texas
("Cradle of Freedom")
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, mapsize = 220px
, map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = United States
, subdivision_type1= State
, subdivision_name1 = Texas
, subdivision_t ...
, was where the first cadre of WAFs reported. Recruits were expected to appear attractive and were schooled in posture and cosmetics along with their physical training and military indoctrination.
African-American recruits joined the WAFs in greater numbers in 1949 when basic training for women was desegregated in the USAF. Integration of quarters and mess was slower in coming.
Barbara A. Wilson started as a Private at Lackland then steadily moved up the ranks. She was the first WAF to complete her Bachelor of Arts degree through a military program at Long Island University. She was the first enlisted WAF NCO (Technical Sergeant) to become an officer via
Officer Training School
Officer Training School (OTS) is a United States Air Force and United States Space Force commissioning program located at Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama.
Overview
Officer Training School is a part of the Jeanne M. Holm Center fo ...
(OTS). She retired at the rank of Major, and earned a master's degree in an Air Force Program at Southern Illinois University. She produced and hosted a TV program about antiques and wrote as a syndicated newspaper columnist in the '80s. Wilson, writing as "Captain Barb", maintains a website with information about women in all branches of the military: ''Women Military Veterans: Yesterday—Today—Tomorrow''.
The first African-American female brigadier general of the USAF was
Marcelite J. Harris who attained the rank in 1990. Harris took OTS at Lackland in 1966, after traveling with a USO tour to military bases in Germany and France. Harris said in a 1992 interview with
Ebony
Ebony is a dense black/brown hardwood, coming from several species in the genus ''Diospyros'', which also contains the persimmons. Unlike most woods, ebony is dense enough to sink in water. It is finely textured and has a mirror finish when pol ...
: "Originally, I wanted to be an actress." After graduating from
Spelman College
Spelman College is a private, historically black, women's liberal arts college in Atlanta, Georgia. It is part of the Atlanta University Center academic consortium in Atlanta. Founded in 1881 as the Atlanta Baptist Female Seminary, Spelman re ...
with a BA in speech and drama she joined the WAFs. Specializing in aircraft maintenance, she served as a supervisor at
Korat Air Base
Korat Royal Thai Air Force Base is a base of the Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) in northeast Thailand, approximately 200 km (125 mi) northeast of Bangkok and about 4 km (2.5 mi) south of the centre of the city of Nakhon Ratchasi ...
in Thailand, servicing Vietnam war aircraft. Harris later became Air Officer Commanding at the
United States Air Force Academy
The United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) is a United States service academy in El Paso County, Colorado, immediately north of Colorado Springs. It educates cadets for service in the officer corps of the United States Air Force and Uni ...
in Colorado. She even picked up a degree in Business Management along the way. Circa 1992 Harris held a command at HQ USAF,
Washington, DC
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan ...
, where she was responsible for 125,000 airmen and an annual budget of $20 billion. She retired in 1997.
Uniforms
The first WAFs wore men's uniforms with neckties.
[Witt, 2005, p. 53.] Geraldine Pratt May quickly ordered women's uniforms, selecting herself the particular shade of blue. The cut of the winter uniform was modeled after those of airline flight attendants, using the same material as the men's winter uniforms. Instead of a necktie, tabs were worn on the collar. The effect was considered "smart and contemporary",
[ The two-piece summer uniform, however, made of cotton-cord seersucker, fit poorly and required frequent ironing.][
]
WAF Band
The 543rd Air Force Band (WAF) was organized in January 1951 by Colonel George S. Howard, Chief of Bands and Music for the Air Force. Eighteen women musicians were directed by Private First Class Mary Divens. In December 1951, MaryBelle Johns Nissly was recruited by Howard to return to military life at the rank of captain to be given the tasks of conductor and commander of the WAF Band.[Witt, 2005, p. 167.] Nissly had left Army service in 1946 as a warrant officer and had previously gained attention as a sergeant by starting the first Women's Army Band at Fort Des Moines in 1942 while she was with the Women's Auxiliary Air Corps (WAAC).
In its ten-year lifespan, the WAF Band was served by some 235 women musicians with approximately 50 members at any one time. Attrition from the organization was often caused by marriage, as band members were required to be single. They also had to be white; the Air Force knew the WAF Band would be touring the segregated Deep South
The Deep South or the Lower South is a cultural and geographic subregion in the Southern United States. The term was first used to describe the states most dependent on plantations and slavery prior to the American Civil War. Following the war ...
and they did not want to cross the race barrier. Concerts were played all over the nation, including Hawaii
Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...
, Alaska
Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...
and Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...
. At least one concert took them to Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
.
The band marched in Eisenhower's two inaugurations, played in the freezing cold for JFK's inauguration and appeared occasionally on live television broadcasts. Home base for the WAF Band was first Lackland, moving in 1953 to Bolling AFB in Washington, DC
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan ...
, where, by Air Force Regulation 190-21, published June 13, 1955, they were officially designated "United States WAF Band", acknowledging their ''de facto'' status as USAF representatives rather than their former status as a simple base band. Their official mission became to "assist, within their capabilities, in promoting Air Force objectives and enhancing the prestige of the Air Force and the United States." This meant there were now ''two'' bands serving as ambassadors of the USAF: the all-male Air Force Band
A military band is a group of personnel that performs musical duties for military functions, usually for the armed forces. A typical military band consists mostly of wind and percussion instruments. The conductor of a band commonly bears the tit ...
and the WAF Band.
In 1957, while flying aboard a C-124 Globemaster II
The Douglas C-124 Globemaster II, nicknamed "Old Shaky", is an American heavy-lift cargo aircraft built by the Douglas Aircraft Company in Long Beach, California.
The C-124 was the primary heavy-lift transport for United States Air Force (USAF ...
, the WAF Band was invited by General James L. Jackson, Deputy Commander of the San Bernardino Air Materiel Area, Air Materiel Command, to move to his headquarters at Norton AFB
Norton Air Force Base (1942–1994) was a United States Air Force facility east of downtown San Bernardino in San Bernardino County, California.
Overview
For the majority of its operational lifetime, Norton was a logistics depot and heavy-li ...
in San Bernardino, California
San Bernardino (; Spanish for "Saint Bernardino") is a city and county seat of San Bernardino County, California, United States. Located in the Inland Empire region of Southern California, the city had a population of 222,101 in the 2020 cen ...
. The move took place in January 1958. The band retained its training and chain-of-command connection with the USAF band school at Bolling. At Norton, the band found it easier to schedule C-124 planes and pilots to keep up their touring schedule.
The WAF Band was inactivated in 1961, most likely victims of their success. Colonel Howard, as leader of the all-male band, had apparently grown less eager to share the spotlight. In 1960, he had diverted a special request for the WAFs to perform in Europe, substituting his band instead. That same year Howard issued a directive forbidding the WAF Band to appear at any civilian functions such as county fairs and schools where they had become popular. Nissly continued to accept these civilian invitations in contravention of the directive, allowing anti-women elements in the USAF an excuse to charge the WAF Band with insubordination. The band was dissolved. Band members were given the option of transferring to a different WAF unit but some left the service entirely. Colonel Howard retired on September 1, 1963. Nissly retired at the rank of Major in 1968.[
The ]Sousa Archives and Center for American Music
The Sousa Archives and Center for American Music (SACAM) documents American music through historical artifacts and archival records in multiple formats. The center is part of the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign's library system an ...
holds the Martha Awkerman WAF and Long Beach Band Papers, 1940-2002 which consists of scrapbooks, photographs, and recordings of cornet soloist Martha Awkerman and the WAF Band.
ROTC program
In 1956, a WAF section was introduced into the Reserve Officer Training Corps
The Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC ( or )) is a group of college- and university-based officer-training programs for training commissioned officers of the United States Armed Forces.
Overview
While ROTC graduate officers serve in all ...
(ROTC) program. Miss Janet Marshall of George Washington University was the first woman to enroll in the WAF Cadet ROTC Program. The program was ordered to be phased out by 1960 by order of the Secretary of the Air Force. By 1959 only 3 WAF ROTC units remained. The downturn was not permanent and by 1970, the Air Force ROTC women cadet program had expanded to a more national scope. Major General
Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...
Wendy M. Masiello
Wendy Lee Motlong Masiello (born 1958 in Lubbock, Texas) retired as a lieutenant general in the United States Air Force on May 24, 2017. From May 2014 to May 24, 2017, she was the director of the Defense Contract Management Agency, based in For ...
, a 1980 graduate of Texas Tech University
Texas Tech University (Texas Tech, Tech, or TTU) is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas. Established on , and called Texas Technological College until 1969, it is the main institution of the five-institution Texas Tech University Sys ...
, is an example of high-ranking woman officer who was commissioned via Air Force ROTC.
Closing chapter
In 1967, President Johnson signed ''Public Law 90-130'', lifting grade restrictions and strength limitations on women in the military.[Witt, 2005, p. 199.]
1973 saw the end of Selective Service
The Selective Service System (SSS) is an independent agency of the United States government that maintains information on U.S. citizens and other U.S. residents potentially subject to military conscription (i.e., the draft) and carries out contin ...
(the "draft"), meaning military recruiting practices were beginning to experience radical changes. In 1976, women were accepted into the military on much the same basis as men; the separate status of WAF was abolished. That same year, the United States Air Force Academy
The United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) is a United States service academy in El Paso County, Colorado, immediately north of Colorado Springs. It educates cadets for service in the officer corps of the United States Air Force and Uni ...
began accepting females.
See also
* Women Airforce Service 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. Members of WASP became t ...
(WASP)
* 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 Auxiliaries, 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 U ...
(WAC)
* WAVES
Waves most often refers to:
*Waves, oscillations accompanied by a transfer of energy that travel through space or mass.
* Wind waves, surface waves that occur on the free surface of bodies of water.
Waves may also refer to:
Music
* Waves (ban ...
* United States Marine Corps Women's Reserve
United States Marine Corps Women's Reserve (Reserve) was the World War II women's branch of the United States Marine Corps Reserve. It was authorized by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on 30July 1942. ...
* SPARS
The United States Coast Guard (USCG) Women's Reserve, also known as the SPARS (SPARS was the acronym for "Semper Paratus—Always Ready"), was the women's branch of the United States Coast Guard Reserve. It was established by the United States ...
* 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 ...
* 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 ...
* Women in the United States Air Force
There have been women in the United States Air Force since 1948, and women continue to serve in it today.Women of the U.S. Air Force: Aiming High By Heather E. Schwartz, p.14
As of 2020, there were 69,564 total women on active duty in the US Navy ...
References
;Notes
;Sources
* Witt, Linda
''A Defense Weapon Known to Be of Value: Servicewomen of the Korean War Era''.
UPNE, 2005. {{ISBN, 1-58465-472-4
External links
''Women Military Veterans: Yesterday—Today—Tomorrow''
WAF Band website
*
All-female military units and formations
1948 establishments in the United States