In support of an official event 

The Museum will be closed Sunday, May 25
In addition, the Fourth Hangar will be closed Saturday, May 24

Access to the Presidential Gallery will be limited from May 15 to June 5
 

Fact Sheet Alphabetical List

Fact Sheet Search

  • WASP DUTY BASES

    After graduating from the training program at Avenger Field in Sweetwater, TX, the WASP were stationed at more than 100 bases across the United States.Click here to return to Women Airforce Service Pilots Overview.

  • WAR EFFORT

    Women at Work Initially, the WASP were only permitted to ferry light aircraft. To better support the war effort, Jackie Cochran advocated expanding the WASP mission to do any job necessary so men could be relieved for combat duty. Eventually, the women delivered fighters, bombers, and transport

  • WOMEN IN THE PILOT’S SEAT

    During World War II, Nancy Harkness Love and Jacqueline Cochran independently proposed using female pilots in the US Army Air Forces (USAAF). Love sought out established female fliers, while Cochran looked to train emerging aviators. At the height of the war, female pilots across the United States

  • WWI Mechanics

    WWI Mechanics: Fitters and Riggers of the Great WarThe careful, precise, and detailed work of enlisted mechanics was essential to winning the air war in World War I.Although pilots received most of the glory associated with aviation, they could not have done their jobs without the hard work of

  • Women in the Air Force – Silhouettes in Southeast Asia War Gallery

    Early “Aviatrix”Women at the turn of the twentieth century refused to be excluded from the excitement of aviation even though it was dangerous. These early “aviatrixes” proved women had the strength and courage to conquer the sky.First American Woman to Solo in an AirplaneBlanche Stuart Scott became

  • Women in the Air Force – displays in Global Reach Gallery

    All-Female Transatlantic FlightSince the 1980’s, women have made a number of all-female crew missions – to publicize and demonstrate women’s increasing presence in the military and in career fields previously only occupied by men.Initially, these historic flights were limited to cargo aircraft. When

  • Women in the Air Force – displays in Research & Development Gallery

    Women on the EdgeWomen are responsible for countless discoveries and inventions since the start of civilization, but they often receive little recognition for their work in the sciences. Women have developed gadgets and tools from everyday items to specialized military equipment. Female Air Force

  • Women in the Air Force – displays in Space Gallery

    USAF Women in SpaceNearly 17 years after the first American was launched into space, NASA accepted its first female astronaut trainees. In January 1978, NASA selected the first six women to train for the Space Shuttle mission. This class also introduced the position of the mission specialist.

  • Women in the Air Force – displays in Missile Gallery

    Female MissileersIn June 1978, women joined the previously male-only missile launch control center as combat crew commanders and missile technicians. Women’s presence in the intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) career field initially raised objections amongst missileer spouses due to the

  • Women in the Air Force – Displays in Cold War Gallery

    Building the FutureThe Transition from Traditional Roles to Non-Traditional JobsDuring the 1970s, the US Air Force opened all but combat and combat support fields to women. Jobs in civil engineering and other demanding fields saw a steady increase of women. The transition from “traditional”