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HEADQUARTERS, ARMY AIR FORCES 100
WASHINGTON 25, D.C.
SUBJECT: Final Report on Women Pilot Programs
TO: Commanding General, Army Air Forces
The requested report on the women pilot program is transmitted herewith. Of necessity, it omits comparative study of experience abroad in various countries with women pilots, due to unavailability of most of the material to date; that information including therein the experience of American women pilots who served in England, will be included in a supplemental report in due course. The report transmitted herewith eliminates detailed supporting data, all of which is being assembled as a part of the historical report being prepared by the Historical Division of the AAF. Statistical data in the accompanying report has been either furnished or verified by the Statistical Control Division.
The outstanding facts and the conclusions and recommendations of the Director of Women Pilots are briefly summarized as follows:
FACTS
More than 25,000 women applied for women pilot training. Eighteen hundred and thirty (1,830) were accepted. 30.7% were eliminated during training for flying deficiency and another 2.2% for other reasons, with consequent lower elimination rate than among male cadet pilots. 8% of those accepted resigned and 1,074 who graduated, 900 remained at time of inactivation, or 83.6% of the graduates, to which should be added 16 of the original WAFS employed who were still with the program at time of inactivation.
The women pilots, subsequent to graduation from the training, flew approximately 60 million miles for the Army Air Forces; the fatalities were 38, or one to about 16,000 hours of flying. Both the accident rate and the fatality rate compared favorably with the rates for male pilots in similar work.
The WASP, according to the overwhelming opinion of station
6-1262,AF
