Those Wonderful Women in Their Flying Machines: The Unknown Heroines of World War II

(by E.M. Singer, author of "Mother Flies Hurricanes")This well-written, thorough, engaging account is prefaced by short biographies on Amelia Earhart and Jacqueline Cochran. The author focuses mainly on the WASPs, but England's Air Transport Auxiliary gets a chapter (which is only right, because the ATA was the forerunner of the WASPs). Roberta Leveaux, who wrote the foreword to Mother Flies Hurricanes, is featured along with other American women who served in the ATA. (She was known as Bobby Sandoz then.) These 25 women, most of them, went by boat across the North Atlantic in 1942, the worst year of the war for U-boat sinkings on Allied shipping. Once in England, they had to endure the same privations and hardships as the British people-rationing, bombings, poor or non-existent heating in the places they were billetted, among other things. This book paints a vivid picture of ATA training, which was strict, comprehensive, and exacting. It had to be, since the pilots had to ferry dozens of different types of aircraft to hundreds of RAF maintenance units and squadrons scattered all over England. Keil's account also explores the feelings of culture shock and homesickness the women felt at being in a foreign country, which was a war zone on top of everything else. They overcame all the physical, mental, and psychological challenges thrown at them, and became top-notch ferry pilots who are still remembered today with admiration and affection by their British compatriots. For more recommendations on books about women pilots and the role they played in WWII, check out the motherflieshurricanes.com website.

Those Wonderful Women in Their Flying Machinesby Sally V. Keil is a wonderful attempt at giving creditto true heros of our nation. Today women compete in manyareas and mostly against other women. In the air, womenobey all the laws of physics that men do. And these womenwere very special. On such women was the late great Aline RhonieHofheimer who besides being on the first to sign up, she alsoserved in ther British Red Cross Ambulance Corp and flew also with the ATA. Prior she created a huge fresco/mural in HangerF of Roosevelt Field on Long Island. It is important thattodays youth understand that such women existed and if notpoisoned by our culture can rise to the top again. God blessthe WAFS and WASPS and all of those women who put themselvesin harms way and never asked for special consideration. Buythe book.

Facinating! A true and candid account of history's flygirls and the Women Pilots during WWII, this book is almost impossible to put down. So little has been told about these pioneering women of the skies. The amazing, daring accounts of pilot training, WWII travels, and the prejudices battled during service are a revealed in such heart-felt and sometimes shocking detail. No other book about women pilots has delved into the day to day life or recounted the history of women flyers with such vigor. You'll head for the nearest flight school!