January 10, 2025
Shaw Local
NewsSportsBearsNewslettereNewspaperObituariesWeekend PlansEvent Calendar

St. Charles library salutes female pilots in WWII with Dec. 11 program

By Shaw Local News Network
Women Airforce Service Pilots (from left) Frances Green, Margaret Kirchner, Ann Waldner and Blanche Osborn leave their B-17 with parachutes in hand at Lockbourne Army Air Force base in Ohio in 1944.

Women Airforce Service Pilots (from left) Frances Green, Margaret Kirchner, Ann Waldner and Blanche Osborn leave their B-17 with parachutes in hand at Lockbourne Army Air Force base in Ohio in 1944. (Provided by the St. Charles Public )

St. Charles community members are invited to learn more about the history of female pilots in the military, during a program held by the St. Charles Public Library on Dec. 11

FAA pilot Rebecca Tulloch will explore the role that over 1,100 female pilots played in the second world war during her presentation “Fly Girls of World War II” at 1 p.m. in the Huntley Community Room of the library at 1 S. Sixth Ave.

Facing a pilot shortage in 1942, the United States military leaders gambled on an experimental program to help fill the void by training women to fly military aircraft so male pilots could be released for combat duty overseas. Tulloch will tell these pilots’ stories and examine their role in the war effort.

Women Airforce Service Pilots, or WASP, flew every American military aircraft, from the PT-17 Stearman to the P51 Mustang and B-17 Flying Fortress. Their missions ranged from Air ferry missions and target practice for artillery crews to aircraft maintenance shakedown flights and more.

For more information or to register, visit scpld.org or call 630-584-0076.

St. CharlesKane CountyLocal News