FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 16, 2009
MEDIA CONTACT: Jeff Sadosky
Hutchison-Mikulski Bill to Award WWII Women Airforce Pilots the Top Civilian Honor Passes in U.S. House
Bill Will Now be Sent to the President to be Signed in to Law
WASHINGTON, DC - Today, legislation honoring the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) of World War II with the Congressional Gold Medal was passed in the U.S. House of Representatives. U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX), Texas’ senior Senator, in March introduced legislation together with Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) to honor these women pilots, who have never received formal or public recognition for their wartime service to the United States. Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) sponsored the House version of the bill.
In the Senate, 75 Senators cosponsored the bill, which passed unanimously on May 18, 2009. The House version was sponsored by 334 Representatives. Now that the legislation has been passed in both chambers of Congress, the bill will be sent to the President for final approval.
“I am so pleased that my colleagues from both sides of the aisle and in both houses of Congress have come together to award the Women Airforce Service Pilots this long overdue honor. Their service and sacrifice has earned them a place of distinction in American history, and this medal will serve as a small token of our nation’s gratitude,” said Sen. Hutchison. “With Congressional passage of this legislation, the process of designing, casting, and presenting these medals may begin. The day that surviving WASP, and the families of those who have passed, get to hold these medals in their hands is at last on the horizon.”
“The Women Airforce Service Pilots of World War II are trailblazers and true patriots. They risked their lives in service to our nation, but for too long their contribution to the war effort has been undervalued or under recognized,” Senator Mikulski said. “I am so pleased both houses of Congress have now come together to right this wrong, and to finally give these courageous women the proper recognition they deserve.”
“Thank you to Senator Hutchison, Senator Mikulski, Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, and those members of Congress who have made this possible. This bill shines a national spotlight on the inspirational history and values of the WASP: honor, service, faith, determination, commitment, integrity, courage, and a devout sense of patriotism. Although they never expected or asked for this extraordinary honor, I do know they are grateful, as are all of us who follow in their footsteps," said Nancy Parrish, Director, Wings Across America.
Between 1942 and 1944, the 1,102 women of WASP were trained in Texas, then went on to fly non-combat military missions so that all their male counterparts could be deployed to combat. These women piloted every kind of military aircraft, and logged 60 million miles flying missions across the United States. They were never awarded full military status and were ineligible for officer status. Following the war, the women pilots paid their own way home. And for the 38 women who died in the line of duty, their families were saddled with the costs to transport their bodies and arrange burials. It was not until 1977 that the WASP participants were granted veterans’ status.
The example set by the Women Airforce Service Pilots paved the way for the armed forces to lift the ban on women attending military flight training in the 1970s, and eventually led to women being fully integrated as pilots in the U.S. military. Today, women fly every type of aircraft and mission, from fighter jets in combat to the shuttle in space flight.
Of the 1,102 women who received their wings as Women Airforce Service Pilots, approximately 300 are living today. The Congressional Gold Medals will be awarded to all 1,102 pilots and/or their surviving family members.
The Congressional Gold Medal is awarded by Congress and, along with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, is the highest and most distinguished honor a civilian may receive. The award is bestowed for exceptional acts of service to the United States or for lifetime achievement. Once approved by Congress, the U.S. Mint designs and creates each gold medal so that it uniquely represents the individual or event being honored. The original medal is then displayed at the Smithsonian Institution.
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