LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Jackie Cochran: Women
built 178 days ago
Jackie Cochran is another woman of honor that comes to mind. During WW II America was needing pilots for fighters and bombers in both the European and Pacific theatres. Jackie had been over to England and saw the women were ferry aircraft which freed the men to fight against the Germans in the RAF. She brought this idea home seeing that there were a lot of young men ferry aircraft in the US. Jackie had two "big name" allies in Washington which she approached with the idea of allowing women to ferry planes ... freeing the men to go do the fighting (which needless to say didn't sit well with many of them).
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Jackie Cochran was a very famous female pilot who had already set several flying records and won many air races. She knew Mrs. Roosevelt who personally had presented her the trophy of the International League of Aviators for being the outstanding women flyer in the world in 1937, 1938 and 1939. Mrs. Roosevelt was a supporter of women’s rights and favored Jackie Cochran’s idea. Nevertheless, the Army was not interested at that time.
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Jackie Cochran loved publicity and had no patience with bureaucratic politics. Her husband's wealth and her own fame gave her access to the highest levels, and she was not shy about using it. In 1939, she wrote to Eleanor Roosevelt to propose a women's flying corps for domestic missions in case of war. The first result of this proposal was a suggestion that Cochran recruit American women to serve as ferry pilots in Britain. It was arranged for her to help take a bomber across the Atlantic, where she met with Pauline Gower, commander of women pilots for Britain's Air Transport Auxiliary.
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Jackie Cochran set up a plan about how female pilots could support the Army. Her proposal was to let the more experienced female pilots take over ferrying missions immediately. Less experienced flyers should get their extra training in a special flying school. She suggested that the women’s unit should be led by a woman who would take orders from General Arnold himself.
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Jackie Cochran was born around 1906 in Pensacola, Florida. The exact date of her birth is not known. She grew up in dire poverty and was working in a textile mill in Georgia until about age 12 when she was then hired for a live-in position at a beauty salon. Jackie proved to be a quick study and was on staff cutting hair professionally by the time she was 13. In the 1920's she was one of the first women to master the newly invented permanent wave. Her earnings were by commission and in her own words she was "giving more permanent waves that Montgomery society could believe and earning more money than even the store manager could feel comfortable about" One of Jackie's regular customers saw her potential and encouraged her to do something more serious with her life.
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When Jackie Cochran heard about the formation of the Women's Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron (WAFS), she was furious. She marched into Gen. Arnold's office and berated him until he agreed that she could start a training program for women. Arnold did not want Cochran going over his head, and in any case, ATC was desperate for pilots. Had it not been for the pressing need, it is questionable whether Jackie would have gotten her way.
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